District Not Recorded

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) today awarded $1 million to the Texas Office of the Governor, Criminal Justice Division, to pay overtime expenses for law enforcement officers who responded to the scene of the deadly shootings on May 18 at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texas. 

The State of Texas, the City of Santa Fe, and Galveston County incurred several million dollars in costs in responding to the incident. State and local officials continue to incur expenses and the grant will defray some of the costs.

"When there is a tragedy, the Department of Justice is there for police and first responders,” said Attorney General Jeff Sessions. “Today, we continue to help state and local police in Texas to rebuild after the tragic murder of ten people at Santa Fe High School. We have provided a total of $1 million to defray their expenses since that terrible day. We honor and respect the law officers who serve at the state, local, and tribal levels, and we continue to support them and their life-saving work every single day."

According to reports, on the morning of May 18, the assailant opened fire in a classroom and the school resource officer and state and local law enforcement personnel confronted the shooter. The assailant reportedly threatened to shoot the officers, firing several rounds while arguing with the police. Officers engaged the shooter and allowed for the safe evacuation of other students and faculty.

Ten people were tragically killed and more than a dozen others were injured.

BJA invited the Texas Governor’s Criminal Justice Division, which administers the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants Program for the state, to apply for the funds. BJA is part of the Justice Department’s Office of Justice Programs.

Funds are made available from the Department’s Fiscal Year 2018 Emergency Federal Law Enforcement Assistance (EFLEA) grant program. The purpose of the EFLEA grant program is to help states respond to unanticipated emergencies that require law enforcement intervention, that are or threaten to become serious and that cannot be addressed with state and local resources alone.

For more information about the Bureau of Justice Assistance, please visit www.bja.gov.

The Office of Justice Programs, headed by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Alan R. Hanson, provides federal leadership in developing the nation’s capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice and assist victims. OJP has six bureaus and offices: the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the Bureau of Justice Statistics; the National Institute of Justice; the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; the Office for Victims of Crime; and the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering and Tracking (SMART). More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

WASHINGTON - A federal a grand jury sitting in Fort Worth, Texas returned an indictment yesterday charging a husband and wife and a Texas attorney with conspiring to defraud the United States and separately charging the husband and wife with tax evasion, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox for the Northern District of Texas.

According to the indictment, Thomas and Michelle Selgas, a married couple, conspired with John O. Green, an attorney licensed to practice in the State of Texas, to defraud the United States by obstructing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from assessing and collecting the Selgases’ federal income taxes.  The indictment charges that in furtherance of the conspiracy the Selgases transferred personal funds to Green’s IOLTA and that Green would pay personal expenses of the Selgases from his IOLTA.   An IOLTA is bank account used by a lawyer to hold money in trust for clients.  The Selgases allegedly deposited the proceeds from the sale of gold coins and other income into Green’s IOLTAs, rather than accounts in their own name, and then caused their personal expenditures to be paid from Green’s IOLTAs, in order to evade paying their federal income taxes.  The indictment further alleges that all three defendants were involved in the filing of a false partnership tax return related to a partnership co-founded by Thomas Selgas.

If convicted, Thomas and Michelle Selgas face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison on the tax evasion charges and five years on the conspiracy.  John Green faces a maximum sentence of five years on the conspiracy.  The defendants also face a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. An indictment is an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Cox and thanked agents of the IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Tax Division Trial Attorneys Robert A. Kemins and Mara Strier, who are prosecuting the case.

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

Mississippi real estate investor Kimberly Foster became the seventh real estate investor to plead guilty in connection with the ongoing investigation into bid rigging at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Mississippi, the Department of Justice announced. 

Felony charges against Foster were filed on June 28, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.  According to those charges, from at least as early as August 20, 2009 through at least as late as December 14, 2016, Kimberly Foster conspired with others not to bid against one another for selected public real estate foreclosure auctions in the Southern District of Mississippi.  Co-conspirators made and received payoffs in exchange for their agreement not to bid.  

“The Division remains committed to holding accountable those who violate the antitrust laws, including real estate investors who take advantage of financial distress to line their own pockets,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Department of Justice Antitrust Division.  “Today’s plea, along with the convictions of well over 100 other individuals who rigged foreclosure auctions all across the country, demonstrates that individual accountability remains a top priority for the Division.”  

“Participation in illegal price-fixing at public auctions debilitates the economy and causes harm to those involved in the foreclosure process,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher Freeze of the FBI in Mississippi. “Perpetrators who attempt to cheat the free market system will be held accountable for their actions.”

The Department stated that the primary purpose of the conspiracy was to suppress and restrain competition in order to obtain selected real estate offered at public foreclosure auctions at non-competitive prices. When real estate properties are sold at these auctions, the proceeds are used to pay off the mortgage and other debt attached to the property, with any remaining proceeds paid to the homeowner. According to court documents, these conspirators paid and received money in connection with their agreement to suppress competition, which artificially lowered the price paid at auction for such homes.

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

The investigation is being conducted by Antitrust Division attorneys in the Washington Criminal II Section and the FBI’s Gulfport Resident Agency, with the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi. Anyone with information concerning bid rigging or fraud related to public real estate foreclosure auctions should contact Antitrust Division prosecutors in the Washington Criminal II Section at 202-598-4000, or visit www.justice.gov/atr/report-violations. 

A jury in the Northern District of California convicted a San Francisco area Certified Public Accountant late yesterday of three counts of aiding and abetting the filing of a false tax return, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Alex G. Tse for the Northern District of California.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Marc Howard Berger, 67, of Walnut Creek, California, willfully assisted in the preparation of three false Form 1040s for G. Steven Burrill for the years 2011, 2012, and 2013.  The guilty verdict followed a three-week jury trial before the Honorable Richard Seeborg, U.S. District Court Judge.

Berger was a CPA and partner with a regional tax preparation firm, Burr Pilger Mayer.  Berger’s client, Burrill, was the owner and CEO of Burrill & Company, Burrill Capital, and several related entities.  Through the entities, Burrill managed venture capital funds, including Burrill Life Sciences Capital Fund III, L.P. (the Fund), a $283 million investment fund focused on the life sciences industry.  Between December 2007 and September 2013, Burrill transferred more than $18 million from the Fund to his management companies in excess of the management fees that were allowable under the agreements that governed the Fund.  Berger intentionally prepared and filed false income tax returns for Burrill that did not report more than $18 million in income, resulting in unpaid taxes of more than $4.7 million.  With Berger’s assistance, Burrill paid no individual income taxes for the years 2009 through 2013.

“The jury’s verdict should serve as a message to all professionals who assist their clients in evading their tax obligations that such assistance will be prosecuted,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman.    

“We are gratified by the jury’s verdict,” said Acting United States Attorney Alex G. Tse.  “Tax preparers must know that they cannot willfully assist clients in defrauding the IRS and failing to pay their fair share.”

Berger and Burrill were both indicted by a federal grand jury on September 14, 2017.  Berger was charged with three counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return.  Berger’s sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.  Berger faces a maximum statutory penalty of three years in prison for each count. 

Burrill pleaded guilty on December 7, 2017 to one count of investment-adviser fraud and one count of tax evasion.  Burrill’s sentencing is scheduled for September 25, 2018.  He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for investment-adviser fraud and five years in prison for tax evasion.

Berger and Burrill also face a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and Acting U.S. Attorney Tse thanked special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Leach and Tax Division Trial Attorney Lori Hendrickson, who are prosecuting the case with the assistance of Maryam Beros, Lilian Arauz Hasse, Larry Garland, and Bridget Kilkenny. 

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

WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury returned an indictment on June 27, which was unsealed today, charging Hattiesburg, Mississippi certified public accountant Carl Nicholson with one count of conspiring to defraud the United States, four counts of filing false tax returns, and six counts of aiding in the preparation of false tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman, U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst for the Southern District of Mississippi, and Mississippi State Auditor Shad White.

According to the indictment, Nicholson was a CPA doing business in Forest County, Mississippi.  From 2012 to 2015, Nicholson is alleged to have conspired with a local attorney, who was a client of Nicholson, to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by falsely classifying the attorney’s personal expenses as deductible business expenses and filing false tax returns on the attorney’s behalf.  On one occasion, Nicholson is alleged to have directed that a $250,000 payment to one of the attorney’s personal trusts be classified as a business expense.  The indictment also alleges that Nicholson falsified his own tax returns for a four-year period by claiming bogus business expenses. 

“Those who personally defraud taxpayers and help others to do the same for personal profit will face swift and certain justice in this district,” said U.S. Attorney Hurst.  “I commend our agents and state investigators for their tenacity and their unflinching manner in following the evidence wherever it led and bringing this defendant to justice. Mr. Nicholson has skirted the law for too long, and today’s indictment proves that no one can hide from justice.”

If convicted, Nicholson faces a maximum of five years in prison for the conspiracy charge and three years for each charge of filing false tax returns and aiding in the preparation of false tax returns.  He also faces supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and United States Attorney Hurst thanked special agents of Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and investigators with the Mississippi Auditor’s Office, who investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorneys Jay Golden and Fred Harper, as well at Trial Attorney Nathan Brooks, who are prosecuting the case.

An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed.  The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

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

FALLS CHURCH, Va. – The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) this week launched an electronic filing pilot program at the San Diego Immigration Court, marking the first phase of the EOIR Courts & Appeals System (ECAS) initiative.

ECAS is part of an overarching information technology modernization effort at EOIR. Its goal is to phase out paper filing and processing, and to retain all records and case-related documents in electronic format. Once fully implemented, ECAS will further enable the timely, fair, and uniform adjudication of immigration cases across the agency.

“After 16 years of inexcusable delays, I am proud that EOIR’s dedicated work over the past year has culminated in the piloting of a comprehensive electronic filing and case management system,” said EOIR Director James McHenry. “With this important initiative, EOIR joins other court systems in the U.S. that have long provided such capabilities. ECAS will aid the parties and assist judges in hearing cases expeditiously and fairly, and will further augment EOIR’s efforts in tackling the pending case backlog.”

ECAS is expected to benefit EOIR’s adjudicators and staff, as well as, the legal representatives and respondents who appear before EOIR’s courts and Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) through cost and time savings from the electronic filing and remote records retrieval capabilities it will support.

This pilot program is available, on a voluntary basis, for legal representatives who practice before EOIR in the pilot locations and will test the ECAS functions that facilitate electronic filing and document storage for cases filed with the immigration courts and BIA. During the next few months, the pilot program will expand to immigration courts in Atlanta; Denver; Charlotte, N.C.; Baltimore; and York, Pa.; as well as the BIA. The program will extend to all remaining immigration courts in 2019.

To learn more, visit EOIR’s website: https://www.justice.gov/eoir/internet-immigration-info.

— EOIR —

Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced today the public release of a report produced by the Attorney General’s Cyber-Digital Task Force.  The report provides a comprehensive assessment of the cyber-enabled threats confronting the Nation, and catalogs the ways in which the Department of Justice combats those threats.  Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein formally issued the report in remarks delivered today at the Aspen Security Forum in Aspen, Colorado.

Attorney General Sessions established the Cyber-Digital Task Force within the Department in February 2018 and directed the Task Force to answer two basic questions:  how is the Department responding to global cyber threats?  And how can federal law enforcement accomplish its mission in this area more effectively?  Today’s report answers the first question.  It canvasses a wide spectrum of cyber threats; defines the multi-faceted challenges posed by cyber-enabled crime; describes the Department’s work in detecting, deterring, and disrupting threats; explains how the Department collaborates with other government departments and with the private sector to respond to cyber incidents; and explores how the Department trains and maintains a skilled workforce.

“The Internet has given us amazing new tools that help us work, communicate, and participate in our economy, but these tools can be—and frequently are—exploited by criminals, terrorists, and enemy governments,” Attorney General Sessions said.  “At the Department of Justice, we take these threats seriously.  That is why I am grateful to the members of the Cyber-Digital Task Force for providing me with this thorough, first-of-its-kind report, which comprehensively details the scope of the problem and provides initial recommendations on the most effective ways that the Department can confront cyber threats and keep the American people safe.”

The report begins by focusing on one of the most pressing cyber-enabled threats confronting the Nation: the threat posed by malign foreign influence operations.  Chapter 1 explains what foreign influence operations are and describes how foreign adversaries have used these operations to target our Nation’s democratic processes, including our elections.  It concludes by describing the Department’s efforts to protect the 2018 midterm elections and announces a new Department policy that governs the disclosure of foreign influence operations.

Chapters 2 and 3 discuss other significant cyber threats, particularly those relating to sophisticated cybercrime schemes, and describes how the Department is deploying its capabilities to combat them.  Chapter 4 focuses on the role of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in responding to cyber incidents.  Chapter 5 describes the Department’s efforts to recruit and train qualified personnel on cyber matters.  Chapter 6 concludes the report by identifying certain priority policy matters and charting a path for the Task Force’s future work.

The Task Force is chaired by Associate Deputy Attorney General Sujit Raman.  Task Force members include John P. Cronan, now the Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Division who until recently served as Acting Assistant Attorney General; John C. Demers, Assistant Attorney General for the National Security Division; Beth A. Williams, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy; John M. Gore, Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Division; Andrew E. Lelling, United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts; Peter A. Winn, the Department’s Acting Chief Privacy and Civil Liberties Officer; and two senior executives at the FBI.  Components from across the Department contributed to the drafting of the Task Force report.  The initial report of the Attorney General’s Cyber-Digital Task Force can be downloaded here, along with a fact sheet here.

Two former employees of a global financial institution were charged in an indictment filed today for their alleged participation in fraudulent and deceptive trading in previous metals futures contracts, announced Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Assistant Director in Charge William Sweeney of the FBI’s New York Field Office.

Edward Bases, 56, of New Canaan, Connecticut, and John Pacilio, 54, of Southport, Connecticut, were each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution and commodities fraud.  Bases and Pacilio were also charged with one count of commodities fraud each.  Pacilio was further charged with five counts of spoofing.    

The indictment alleges that Bases and Pacilio, who were employed as precious metals traders at banks in New York, New York, engaged in multi-year schemes to mislead the market for precious metals futures traded on the Commodity Exchange Inc (COMEX), which was an exchange run by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group  The defendants and their co-conspirators are alleged to have defrauded market participants by placing orders that they did not intend to execute in order to create the appearance of false supply and demand and to induce other market participants to trade at prices, quantities and times that they otherwise would not have traded.

An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.  

This case was investigated by the FBI’s New York Field Office.  Trial Attorneys Ankush Khardori and Jeffery Le Riche of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case

The Fraud Section plays a pivotal role in the Department of Justice’s fight against white collar crime around the country.

Individuals who believe that they may be a victim in this case should visit the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness website for more information.

A federal grand jury today unsealed an indictment charging El’Shawn Williams, an officer in the Put-in-Bay Police Department, with using excessive force against a man in custody, and then making false statements and writing false reports to cover it up. The indictment alleges that Williams, 28, punched and struck the victim multiple times in the head and body, causing him bodily injury. 

The indictment was announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division John Gore, United States Attorney Justin Herdman of the Northern District of Ohio, and Special Agent in Charge Stephen D. Anthony of the FBI’s Cleveland Division.

The indictment alleges that after the incident, Williams wrote a report that falsely minimized the force he used and failed to disclose that he struck the victim after the victim was restrained by another officer. It also alleges that Williams gave a false statement to an Ottawa County detective denying that he punched the victim, denying that he struck him in the face, and denying that he struck him after the victim was restrained by another officer.

If convicted, Williams faces a maximum punishment of 10 years imprisonment for the excessive force charge and up to 20 years imprisonment for each obstruction charge. An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

This case was investigated jointly by the Cleveland Division of the Federal Bureau Investigation and the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Freeman of the Northern District of Ohio and Trial Attorney Dana Mulhauser of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.    

A Bloomfield Hills, Michigan resident, pleaded guilty today in Flint, Michigan to one count of structuring a financial transaction to avoid bank reporting requirements, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.

According to court documents, Scott Zack, who entered his plea today, and David Katz, who pleaded guilty on June 12, owned and operated several medical management companies and a chiropractic facility in Michigan, including Health Systems Medical Management, LLC and Medical Management Partners, LLC.  In July 2013, Scott Zack and David Katz withdrew cash in amounts of less than $10,000 from multiple bank branch locations in order to avoid the requirement that domestic banks file a currency transaction report for transactions in amounts exceeding $10,000.  As part of their pleas, Zack and Katz acknowledged that during the period of their scheme their unlawful conduct involved more than $250,000. 

In a related case, John Anthony Capella of Lantana, Florida pleaded guilty on May 29 to conspiracy to defraud the United States.  According to court documents filed in that case, Capella did so by causing, for example, businesses he controlled to file false documents with the IRS, including a tax return that underreported substantial cash receipts.

Honorable Lisa V. Parker scheduled sentencing for February 19, 2019.  Katz and Zack each face a maximum sentence of five years in prison, as well as a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. 

Capella faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release for conspiring to defraud the United States. 

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg thanked special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Tax Division Trial Attorneys Mark McDonald and William Guappone, who prosecuted this case.  Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg also thanked the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan for its substantial assistance during the investigation. 

More information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts is available on the Division’s website.

Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division and John F. Bash, United States Attorney for the Western District of Texas, today announced that the Department of Justice has reached a settlement agreement with WiFi Alliance, a non-profit organization headquartered in Austin, Texas. The settlement agreement resolves allegations that WiFi Alliance violated the employment rights of Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Charles O’Donnell, an Army Reservist, under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA). USERRA safeguards the rights of uniformed servicemembers, including Reservists, to all benefits of employment following periods of absence due to military service obligations.

According to the complaint, LTC O’Donnell’s military service was a motivating factor in WiFi Alliance’s decision to terminate his employment in 2016 as part of a reduction in force. The layoff was concurrent with his military duty, which supported West Point Admissions at the United States Military Academy.

LTC O’Donnell has served more than 22 years in the Armed Forces. He was a program manager with WiFi Alliance for three years.

Under the terms of the settlement, WiFi Alliance has agreed to pay $62,500 in back pay to LTC O’Donnell. In addition, WiFi Alliance has conducted a company-wide training on servicemember rights, and agreed to review and revise, if necessary, its anti-discrimination policies and procedures to ensure that current and future employees are aware of, and protected by, their USERRA rights.

“The men and women of our Armed Forces expect and are entitled to the peace of mind of knowing that their civilian employment will not be jeopardized because they serve our country,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division. “Through this lawsuit, the Department of Justice reaffirms its commitment to protecting the employment rights of the members of our Armed Forces.”

“We are pleased that our office was able to work alongside Acting Assistant Attorney General Gore and the dedicated career attorneys in the Civil Rights Division to obtain an agreement that will ensure that LTC O’Donnell will be compensated and that WiFi Alliance will train its supervisors in order to guarantee continued compliance with USERRA,” said United States Attorney John F. Bash of the Western District of Texas.

LTC O’Donnell initially filed a complaint with the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (VETS), which investigated this matter and attempted to reach a resolution between the parties. After resolution efforts failed, VETS referred the complaint to the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Employment Litigation Section. The lawsuit, filed on March 1, was a collaborative initiative between the Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.

Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Torie Atkinson and Assistant United States Attorney James Dingivan represented LTC O’Donnell in this matter.

The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division has given high priority to the enforcement of servicemembers’ rights under USERRA. Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department’s websites at http://www.justice.gov/crt/employment- litigation-section and www.servicemembers.gov, as well as on the Labor Department’s website at www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra/main.htm.  

The Department of Justice announced today that NPB Neue Privat Bank (NPB) reached a resolution with the Tax Division.  NPB will pay a penalty of $5 million.

“The Department of Justice is committed to ending the practice of using foreign bank accounts to evade taxes,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. “Taxpayers and financial institutions should take notice that the Department is continuing to aggressively pursue these cases.”

According to the terms of the non-prosecution agreement signed today, NPB agrees to cooperate in any related criminal or civil proceedings, demonstrate its implementation of controls to stop misconduct involving undeclared U.S. accounts and pay a penalty in return for the Department’s agreement not to prosecute this bank for tax-related criminal offenses.

NPB is a Swiss private bank based in Zurich, Switzerland.  Until 2012, NPB conducted a U.S. cross-border banking business that aided and assisted certain of its U.S. clients in opening and maintaining undeclared accounts in Switzerland and concealing the assets and income they held in these accounts from the U.S. government. NPB offered a variety of traditional Swiss banking services that it knew could assist, and did in fact assist, U.S. clients in the concealment of assets and income from the IRS, including the use of numbered accounts and hold mail services. 

NPB signed agreements with individual external asset managers or external asset management firms, whereby clients of the external asset manager could open and maintain accounts at NPB, with account management services being provided by the external asset manager. Almost all of NPB’s U.S. accounts were managed by external asset managers, for whom it provided custodial and limited banking services. In such cases, NPB generally did not contact the clients directly once they had opened their account. The Bank required an external asset manager mandate, so that communication about asset management and investment decisions were done between the U.S. customer and their external asset manager(s). In a few circumstances, NPB managed U.S. customers directly without an external asset manager. In those cases, the Bank required the U.S. customer to sign a direct asset management mandate, allowing the Bank to make investment decisions for the account. 

In 2001, NPB entered into a Qualified Intermediary Agreement (QI Agreement) with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  The Qualified Intermediary regime provided a comprehensive framework for U.S. information reporting and tax withholding by a non-U.S. financial institution with respect to U.S. securities. The QI Agreement required NPB to obtain IRS Forms W-9 and to undertake IRS Form 1099 reporting for new and existing U.S. clients engaged in U.S. securities transactions.  Notwithstanding this requirement, NPB chose to continue to service U.S. clients without disclosing their identity to the IRS.  NPB’s view was that it could continue to accept and service U.S. account holders, even if it knew or had reason to believe they were engaged in tax evasion, so long as it complied with the QI Agreement, which in NPB’s view did not apply to account holders who were not trading in U.S.-based securities or to accounts that were nominally structured in the name of a non-U.S.-based entity.  NPB formed this view without consulting legal counsel. 

Between August 1, 2008 and December 31, 2015, NPB held a total of 353 U.S.-related accounts, which included both declared and undeclared accounts, with an aggregate peak year-end value of approximately $400 million in assets under management.

In approximately early 2009, NPB was approached by certain external asset managers who managed accounts on behalf of U.S. taxpayers and were seeking a replacement custodian bank for accounts for U.S. taxpayers that were being closed by other Swiss banks, including UBS AG.  Some of these external asset managers and NPB discussed the long-term trend towards tax compliance in Switzerland and that eventually the external asset managers would only be able to manage accounts that were declared to the U.S. government. Those external asset managers told NPB that they were telling their clients to become tax compliant. However, the external asset managers also made clear to NPB that many of their clients who wished to onboard accounts at the Bank had not yet declared their accounts to the U.S. government. The external asset managers did not promise, and NPB did not require, that all accounts onboarded to NPB would become compliant within a specific period of time. In one instance, however, an external asset manager onboarded accounts from other Swiss banks that the Bank knew were undeclared with no discussion of tax compliance until 2011.

NPB viewed the taking of clients from other banks that were exiting U.S. taxpayers as a business opportunity. During a board of directors meeting held on March 9, 2009, the board unanimously resolved that it would allow U.S. taxpayers to open accounts at NPB, including customers who were forced to exit other banks.  Prior to 2009, NPB had few U.S. clients. At the close of 2008, U.S. Related Accounts held approximately 8 million Swiss francs in assets.  By the end of 2009, NPB had approximately 450 million Swiss francs under management in accounts owned or beneficially owned by U.S. taxpayers, an influx of approximately 442 million Swiss Francs.  Approximately 69% of the U.S.-related assets held by the Bank at the end of 2009 were reported to the U.S. government by the account holder in or before the 2009 tax year.

NPB’s executives hoped that their U.S. customers would eventually fully declare their accounts and keep their money at the Bank after becoming compliant. However, NPB created no written or formal policies to encourage or mandate tax compliance and, in fact, continued to acquire and service non-compliant U.S. taxpayers.

According to NPB executives, beginning in August 2010, NPB decided not to open any new accounts for U.S. customers who were not tax-compliant. NPB did not memorialize this decision in any written policy nor in any executive board or management board meeting minutes. NPB knew in August 2010 that some of its existing U.S. customers were not tax-compliant, but continued to service those accounts. 

Until at least August 2010, NPB did not require a Form W-9 from U.S. clients to open an account.  NPB did not require the completion of Forms W-9 for existing U.S. customers until approximately summer of 2011.

NPB serviced some U.S. customers who structured their accounts so that they appeared as if they were held by a non-U.S. legal structure, such as an offshore corporation or trust, which aided and abetted the clients’ ability to conceal their undeclared accounts from the IRS. At least 89 of NPB’s U.S. Related Accounts, both declared and undeclared, were held in the name of offshore structures, including trusts or corporations purportedly domiciled in Panama, Liechtenstein, the British Virgin Islands, Hong Kong, and Belize.  NPB never assisted customers in setting up such offshore structures.  For accounts held in non-U.S. legal structures opened in 2009 and prior to Summer 2010, NPB did not require the signing of either a Form W-9 or Form W-8BEN.

NPB increased its efforts to obtain tax compliance from its U.S. customers in 2010 and 2011, but continued to service undeclared accounts.  NPB first requested tax compliance evidence from its external asset managers for U.S. clients in August 2011.  NPB serviced the declared and undeclared clients of two external asset managers after their respective indictments in the United States. 

NPB has cooperated with the Department of Justice in this investigation, including by producing information relating to the U.S. taxpayer clients who maintained assets overseas, including the identities of the account holders and/or beneficial owners of more than 88% of assets, and by making multiple executives available for interview by the Department of Justice.

While U.S. accountholders at NPB who have not yet declared their accounts to the IRS may still be eligible to participate in the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program, the price of such disclosure has increased.  Most U.S. taxpayers who enter the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program to resolve undeclared offshore accounts will pay a penalty equal to 27.5 percent of the high value of the accounts.  On Aug. 4, 2014, the IRS increased the penalty to 50 percent if, at the time the taxpayer initiated their disclosure, either a foreign financial institution at which the taxpayer had an account or a facilitator who helped the taxpayer establish or maintain an offshore arrangement had been publicly identified as being under investigation, the recipient of a John Doe summons or cooperating with a government investigation, including the execution of a deferred prosecution agreement or non-prosecution agreement.  With today’s announcement of this non-prosecution agreement, noncompliant U.S. accountholders at NPB must now pay that 50 percent penalty to the IRS if they wish to enter the IRS Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program.  The IRS recently announced that the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program will close on September 28, 2018.

“The non-prosecution agreement with NPB should signal that IRS CI continues its fight against offshore tax evasion,” said Don Fort, Chief IRS-Criminal Investigation. “The IRS devotes considerable resources in the U.S. and abroad to hold accountable those individuals and institutions that seek to cheat the U.S. tax system. I urge anyone not compliant with their tax obligations to consider the offshore voluntary disclosure program before it closes on September 28, 2018.”

Principal Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division thanked Senior Litigation Counsel Nanette Davis of the Tax Division and Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle Petersen and Patrick King of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois and IRS-Criminal Investigation, in particular IRS Special Agent Michael Leach, for their substantial assistance. 

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

A Homestead, Florida, man was arrested on an indictment yesterday, stemming from charges that he surreptitiously produced pornographic audio and video recordings of himself engaging in sexual activity with multiple men and then caused the videos to be posted on one or more subscription-based pornography websites without their knowledge or consent.      

Bryan Deneumostier, 32, also known by the screen name “susanleon33326,” was charged in a five-count indictment in the Southern District of Florida with two counts of illegal interception of oral communications and three counts of record keeping violations. 

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Benjamin G. Greenberg for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Mark Selby of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami Field Office, made the announcement today.

The indictment, which was unsealed July 18, references three victims whose identities are being withheld to protect their privacy.  Without two of the referenced victims’ knowledge or consent, Deneumostier allegedly recorded his sexual encounters with them, and then caused these videos to be posted on one or more websites.  These two allegedly nonconsensual recordings form the basis of the surreptitious-recording charges.  The indictment further alleges that Deneumostier was a producer of pornography, used performers portrayed in a visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct, and did not ascertain the performers’ identification or age, as required by federal law. 

Any individuals who believe they might be a victim are encouraged to contact HSI at (866) 347-2423.

The investigation is being conducted by HSI.  Senior Trial Attorney Mona Sedky of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Cary Aronovitz of the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case. 

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

WASHINGTON - A resident of Cheyenne, Wyoming and creator of “Fitwall” exercise equipment pleaded guilty today to two counts of willfully failing to file his income tax returns and one count of making a fraudulent application for health care benefits.  The change of plea was announced by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Mark A. Klaassen for the District of Wyoming, whose offices are engaged in a joint prosecution of this case.

According to court documents, from 2008-2012, Douglas E. Brendle owned and operated Brendle Climbing Systems, LLC, which sold Fitwalls.  In January 2013, Brendle sold the rights to Fitwall to investors, and in exchange received nearly $1.5 million in payments during the period of 2013-2014.  Despite receiving this income, Brendle failed to file individual income tax returns or pay income taxes in 2013 or 2014.  Brendle’s conduct resulted in a tax loss of $404,501.

Additionally, during 2013-2014, Brendle fraudulently received health care benefits for himself and his family from Wyoming Medicaid, a jointly administered federal-state health care program that pays for medical care for eligible low-income individuals and families.  In December 2013, Brendle caused a false renewal application to be filed for Wyoming Medicaid claiming his household had no income.  During 2013–2014, Wyoming Medicaid paid Brendle over $20,000 in benefits to which he and his family were not entitled.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 24, 2018.  Brendle faces a statutory maximum sentence of three years in prison, as well as a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.

“These cases take substantial time and effort to investigate and prosecute, but serve as a reminder that no person is above the law, and we will hold those accountable who use improper means to avoid taxes,” said U.S Attorney Klaassen.  “We also cannot allow false claims against our health care programs to siphon resources intended to assist our most needy families.” 

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Klaassen commended the work of special agents of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation office in developing the case against Brendle, as well as Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric J. Heimann and Trial Attorney Eric C. Schmale of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting the case.

Additional information about the enforcement efforts of the United States Attorney’s Office and the Tax Division may be found on their respective websites.

Federal Suit Alleges City Discriminated Against City-Employed Registered Nurses and Midwives by not Recognizing their Work as “Physically Taxing”

Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, today announced a proposed settlement with the City of New York to compensate City-employed registered nurses and midwives who were subjected to discrimination because they are women.  The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York filed the proposed settlement along with a complaint in federal district court.  According to the allegations of the complaint, the City failed to recognize that the work of predominantly-female registered nurses and midwives was “physically taxing,” while deeming other predominantly-male occupations “physically taxing.”  As a result, City employees in the predominantly-male “physically taxing” jobs were allowed to retire with full pensions as early as age 50, while registered nurses and midwives, who are predominantly female, had to wait until age 55 or 57 to retire with full pensions.

“This Settlement Agreement will provide significant relief to a class of female nurses and midwives employed by the City of New York who were harmed by the City’s discriminatory employment practices,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. “We applaud the United States’ Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York for prosecuting this matter and acknowledge the City of New York’s commendable efforts in ensuring that this matter was brought to resolution without protracted litigation.” 

“City nurses and midwives care for sick and injured adults, juveniles, and infants through long days and nights under difficult circumstances, and rightfully should be recognized as doing physically taxing work,” said U.S. Attorney Donoghue. “Equal treatment under law means just that, equal treatment and this Office is committed to ensuring that women are treated fairly and equitably in the workplace.”  He also thanked the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for its investigative work prior to referring this matter to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Beginning in 1968, the City allowed certain City employees with 25 years of service the option of retiring with full pensions beginning at the age of 50, if the employees worked in jobs the City deemed “physically taxing.” At that time, the City refused to recognize the work of registered nurses and midwives, which was performed mostly by women, as “physically taxing,” but did recognize as physically taxing work performed mostly by men in occupations such as Emergency Medical Specialist - EMT, Exterminator, Motor Vehicle Dispatcher, Window Cleaner, Foremen, and Plumbers.

Beginning in 2004, the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), a labor union representing City-employed registered nurses and midwives, began requesting that the City recognize the work of registered nurses and midwives  as physically taxing and also allow NYSNA’s qualifying members the option of retiring as early as age 50.  The City denied that request in 2004, and again in 2006 and 2008.  Thereafter, NYSNA and four of its members filed complaints with the EEOC.  The EEOC determined there was reason to believe that the City had discriminated against the nurses when it failed to recognize registered nurse and midwife occupational titles as “physically taxing” in 1968, and again when NYSNA made its requests in 2004, 2006 and 2008.  The EEOC then referred the matter to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The settlement applies to a proposed class of approximately 1,665 registered nurses and midwives hired by the City from Sept. 15, 1965, through March 31, 2012.  Subject to court approval, the City would pay these registered nurses and midwives, who would otherwise have been eligible to retire at an earlier age, between $1,000 and $99,000, depending upon their years of qualifying service and the number of years earlier they would have been eligible to retire.  The settlement also provides for the City to pay attorney’s fees and an additional $100,000 to the four nurses who initiated the EEOC complaint which led to today’s result.   

This matter was handled by Eastern District of New York Assistant United States Attorneys John Vagelatos and Michael J. Goldberger.

A federal grand jury in Dallas, Texas returned an indictment on Feb. 6, which was unsealed Friday, July 13, charging two return preparers with filing fraudulent tax returns, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Erin N. Cox for the Northern District of Texas. 

The indictment charges Francisco Ventura and Mario Melendez with conspiracy to defraud the United States and filing fraudulent tax returns for clients.  It further charges Ventura with wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and filing a fraudulent personal tax return. 

According to the indictment, Ventura owned and operated multiple tax preparation businesses in Irving, Texas including AJJ Tax and More, Uptown Multi Services and I-Care Financial Services.  Melendez allegedly worked for Ventura as a manager and return preparer at Uptown.  From November 2013 through May 2014, Ventura and Melendez allegedly conspired to defraud the United States by preparing fraudulent income tax returns that included fake business and education expenses seeking refunds to which their clients were not entitled.  Ventura and Melendez allegedly taught tax preparation classes to employees of Uptown and AJJ on how to falsify client returns. The indictment further alleges that Ventura used nominees to obtain Preparer Tax Identification Numbers (PTIN) and Electronic Filing Identification Numbers (EFIN) from the IRS in order to conceal his ownership of the businesses, and that Ventura stole the name and PTIN of another person to electronically file fraudulent returns with the IRS.  Ventura is also alleged to have filed a personal 2014 individual tax return that underreported his income.

If convicted, Ventura and Melendez face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison for the conspiracy charge and three years in prison for each count of filing fraudulent tax returns.  Ventura further faces a statutory maximum sentence of twenty years in prison for each wire fraud count, three years in prison for filing a fraudulent individual income tax return and a mandatory two years in prison for each aggravated identity theft count.  Ventura and Melendez also face a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties.

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

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Cox commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Trial Attorneys Alexander Effendi and Melanie Smith of the Tax Division, who are prosecuting this case.

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

The Justice Department today announced that a federal jury in Victoria, Texas, has returned guilty verdicts on all counts as charged related to the 2017 burning of a local mosque. Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Ryan Patrick, Special Agent in Charge Fred Milanowski of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Special Agent in Charge Perrye K. Turner of the FBI made the announcement.

The jury found Marq Vincent Perez, 26, of Victoria, guilty for a hate crime in the burning of the Victoria Islamic Center on Jan. 28, 2017, and for use of a fire to commit a felony. In addition, they found he possessed an unregistered destructive device for an incident that occurred on Jan. 15, 2017.

“All people are entitled to live free from violence and fear, regardless of their religion or place of worship,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division. “Perez’s actions were criminal, unlawful, and dangerous. This Justice Department is committed to holding hate crimes perpetrators accountable under the law.”

“This case represents the great coordination and cooperation of many federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies,” said U.S. Attorney Ryan Patrick. “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting the religious liberty of all people and their ability to practice their faith without being the target of this kind of dangerous activity.”

“Houses of worship are scared places in America,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Fred Milanowski. “We are pleased in the outcome of this investigation, and ATF will continue to aggressively investigate all House of worship fires.”

“Hate crimes are not only an attack on a specific victim, they threaten the cornerstone of diversity that America was built upon,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Perrye K. Turner. “Perpetrators of hate crimes, like Perez, aim to chip away at our nation’s foundations by instilling fear into entire communities with violence.”

The jury heard from a total of 19 government witnesses, including law enforcement officers, experts, and others who testified about communications with Perez, one of whom detailed how Perez called Muslims “towelheads.” An FBI agent took the stand and described hate-filled messages found on Perez’s Facebook account.  

Testimony in court detailed how Perez planned the event and revealed how he had done “recon” of the mosque in the days leading up to the fire. A witness who was with Perez on the night of the fire described how excited Perez was upon seeing the mosque in flames, explaining that he was “jumping up and down like a little kid.”

Additional evidence presented in court revealed that items taken during two burglaries at the mosque were found at his home, and also an improvised bomb similar to what was used in an attempted car-bombing approximately two weeks prior to the fire.

The jury also heard from an arson expert who concluded the fire was the result of an “intentional application of an open flame.”

The jury found Perez guilty on all counts as charged and deliberated for approximately three hours following a five-day trial.

Perez faces up to 20 years in federal prison for the hate crime and up to 10 years for possessing an unregistered destructive device. For use of a fire to commit a felony, the penalty is a consecutive and mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison. All of the counts also carry a potential $250,000 fine. Sentencing has been set for October 2.

ATF and FBI conducted the investigation along with the City of Victoria Fire Marshal’s Office, Victoria Fire Department, Victoria Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety - Criminal Investigations Division and Texas Rangers with assistance of Texas State Fire Marshal’s Office and sheriff’s offices in Victoria and Nueces Counties.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Khandelwal and Kate Suh are prosecuting the case along with Trial Attorney Saeed Mody of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division.

Richard C. Davis, the founder and former president and CEO of Michigan-based Second Chance Body Armor, Inc., agreed to resolve claims under the False Claims Act in connection with his role in the sale of defective Zylon bullet-proof vests purchased by the United States for federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies, the Justice Department announced today. Mr. Davis will relinquish his interest in $1.2 million in assets previously frozen by the United States and will pay an additional $125,000 to the United States.  This settlement is based on Mr. Davis’ ability to pay.  

Second Chance sold body armor to state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies reimbursed by the Department of Justice’s Bulletproof Vest Partnership (BVP) program and to federal agencies under contracts with the General Services Administration. The United States alleged that Second Chance’s vests were defective due to the loss of their ballistic capability when exposed to heat and humidity. The United States also alleged that by 2001, Davis was aware that Second Chance’s Zylon body armor was degrading at what he described as a “disappointing” rate.

The United States further alleged that, rather than using a $6 million payment from Toyobo Co. Ltd., the manufacturer of Zylon fiber, to fix the degradation problem, Second Chance pocketed the money and Davis and other Second Chance owners began meeting with various investment bankers in an effort to sell Second Chance. These efforts to sell the company allegedly stopped after a Forest Hills, Pennsylvania police officer was shot through his Second Chance Zylon vest in June 2003. Second Chance filed for bankruptcy in 2004 and was liquidated.  

Subsequent tests by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) of Zylon-containing vests found that more than 50 percent of used vests could not stop bullets that they had been certified to stop. The performance of Second Chance Zylon vests were reported to be among the worst.  The NIJ removed all Zylon-containing vests from its list of compliant products, and Zylon is no longer used in ballistic vests.  

“The Department of Justice will pursue those who attempt to fraudulently profit at the expense of the United States, particularly when the stakes are life or death,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio.  “Bullet proof vests protect the brave men and women of our nation’s law enforcement community, and those who manufacture and sell these products have a solemn duty to ensure their safety and efficacy.”

"Fraudulently presenting false claims to the government regarding products intended to protect the lives of public servants is illegal and utterly unacceptable," said Carol F. Ochoa, Inspector General of the U.S. General Services Administration.

“I again want to emphasize that marketing faulty protective gear to law enforcement officers who put themselves in the line of fire is an unconscionable act and a betrayal of trust” said Jon Adler, Director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance. “Our unwavering priority is to protect our officers as they keep our communities safe.”

The settlement resolves, in part, allegations filed in a lawsuit by Aaron Westrick, Ph.D., a former employee of Second Chance, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery. The Act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in this case as to the allegations against Davis. Dr. Westrick will receive $28,750 plus a share of whatever the United States ultimately recovers from the previously frozen funds.    

This settlement is part of a larger investigation of the body armor industry’s use of Zylon.  The United States has previously recovered over $132 million from 18 corporations and individuals who participated in the sale of Zylon body armor. The Civil Division has transferred over $22 million of these recovered funds to the BVP program to replace BVP funds which had been used to purchase Zylon vests. The funds transferred to the BVP program will be used to fund the purchase of additional ballistic-resistant vests for state, local and tribal law enforcement officers. The United States is continuing to pursue claims against Honeywell International Inc., which allegedly sold a laminated version of Zylon for use in police armor.

The investigation and litigation of this matter were handled by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch; the General Services Administration, Office of the Inspector General; the Department of Commerce, Office of Inspector General; the Defense Criminal Investigative Service; the U.S. Army Criminal Investigative Command; the Department of the Treasury, Office of Inspector General for Tax Administration; the Air Force Office of Special Investigations; the Department of Energy, Office of the Inspector General; and the Defense Contracting Audit Agency.   

The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.  The lawsuit partially resolved by the settlement is captioned United States ex rel. Westrick v. Second Chance Body Armor, et al., No. 04-0280 (PLF) (D.D.C.). 

A former business partner of a U.S. military contractor pleaded guilty today to one count of bribery for his role in a years-long scheme to bribe U.S. Army contracting officials stationed at a U.S. military base in Kuwait, announced Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

According to the plea filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, Finbar Charles, 62, a citizen of Saint Lucia most recently residing in Baguio City, Philippines, was a business partner of a former U.S. military contractor, Terry Hall.  As Hall’s business partner, Charles facilitated Hall and others in providing millions of dollars in bribes in approximately 2005 to 2007 to various U.S. Army officials in exchange for preferential treatment for Hall’s companies in connection with Department of Defense (DOD) contracts to deliver bottled water and construct security fencing to support U.S. troops stationed in Kuwait and Iraq. 

As part of his role in this criminal conspiracy, Charles managed bank accounts in Kuwait and the Philippines that he used to receive DOD payments and transfer illegal bribes to various U.S. Army contracting officials, including Majors Eddie Pressley, John Cockerham, James Momon, and Chris Murray.  All of those individuals, as well as at least 10 other coconspirators, have pleaded guilty or been convicted of crimes relating to this scheme.  Charles admitted that he personally received over $228,000 in illicit gains as a result of his participation.  

The sentencing is set for Nov. 26.

This case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, the FBI, and the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction.  The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided substantial assistance in this matter.  The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorneys Peter N. Halpern and Robert J. Heberle of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Attorney General Jeff Sessions, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott of the Eastern District of California and DEA Special Agent in Charge Chris Nielsen announced this week Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S.), a new program that seeks to reduce the supply of deadly synthetic opioids in high impact areas, specifically fentanyl, and to identify wholesale distribution networks and international and domestic suppliers.

“When it comes to synthetic opioids, there is no such thing as a small case,” Attorney General Sessions said. “In 2016, synthetic opioids killed more Americans than any other kind of drug. Three milligrams of fentanyl can be fatal — that’s not even enough to cover up Lincoln’s face on a penny. Our prosecutors in Manatee County, Florida have shown that prosecuting seemingly small synthetic opioids cases can have a big impact and save lives, and we want to replicate their success in the districts that need it most. This new strategy — and the new prosecutors who will help carry it out — will help us put more traffickers behind bars and keep the American people safe from the threat of these deadly drugs.”

As part of Operation S.O.S., the Department will launch an enforcement surge in 10 districts that have experienced high drug overdose death rates, including the Eastern District of California. The DEA Special Operations Division will coordinate efforts to ensure that leads from street-level cases are used to identify larger-scale distributors. In addition, the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Executive Office will send an additional two-year term Assistant United States Attorney to each participating district to assist with drug-related prosecutions.

“The deadliness of synthetic opioids cannot be emphasized enough,” U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott said. “These drugs kill and have the power to ruin the lives of those in their grip. The Eastern District of California is a transshipment corridor for all kinds of drugs, including fentanyl and fentanyl analogues, and many of our communities, especially in the district’s northern counties, have experienced their devastating effects. We plan to employ these new resources to help protect our communities from these lethal drugs.”

“Too many Americans are caught in the terrible grip of opioid addiction, and fentanyl can kill,” stated DEA Special Agent in Charge Chris Nielsen. “We have seen an increase in the availability of synthetic opioids in this region — along with the destructive consequences that follow. DEA is committed to using every tool available to pursue those distributing this poison in our communities, and we welcome this announcement by the Attorney General.”

The Eastern District of California will use the additional resources to coordinate with district attorney offices to prosecute every readily provable case involving the distribution of fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and other synthetic opioids. The office will also redouble efforts to disrupt the distribution of these drugs by targeting the transshipment corridors that bisect the district: Interstate Highways 5 and 80.  Through these efforts, law enforcement can stop further distribution of the drugs to the Midwest and East Coast, while also working to identify and prosecute large-scale suppliers. Already this year, 13.9 kilos (over 30 pounds) of fentanyl have been seized in the Eastern District of California.

According to the California Department of Public Health, Modoc County had an opioid overdose death rate of 23.78 out of 100,000 residents in 2017, which is about five times the overall rate for California, which is 4.49 opioid deaths per 100,000 residents. Yuba and Shasta County’s opioid overdose death rate is almost three times the state’s rate.

The other nine districts participating in Operation S.O.S. are:

Northern District of Ohio

Southern District of Ohio

Eastern District of Tennessee

Eastern District of Kentucky

Southern District of West Virginia

Northern District of West Virginia

District of Maine

Western District of Pennsylvania

District of New Hampshire

The Department of Justice today announced that a grand jury in the District of Columbia returned an indictment presented by the Special Counsel’s Office. The indictment charges twelve Russian nationals for committing federal crimes that were intended to interfere with the 2016 U.S. presidential election. All twelve defendants are members of the GRU, a Russian Federation intelligence agency within the Main Intelligence Directorate of  the Russian military. These GRU officers, in their official capacities, engaged in a sustained effort to hack into the computer networks of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, the Democratic National Committee, and the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton, and released that information on the internet under the names "DCLeaks" and "Guccifer 2.0" and through another entity.

“The Internet allows foreign adversaries to attack America in new and unexpected ways,” said Deputy Attorney General Rod J. Rosenstein. “Together with our law enforcement partners, the Department of Justice is resolute in its commitment to locate, identify and seek to bring to justice anyone who interferes with American elections. Free and fair elections are hard-fought and contentious, and there will always be adversaries who work to exacerbate domestic differences and try to confuse, divide, and conquer us. So long as we are united in our commitment to the shared values enshrined in the Constitution, they will not succeed.”

According to the allegations in the indictment, Viktor Borisovich Netyksho, Boris Alekseyevich Antonov, Dmitriy Sergeyevich Badin, Ivan Sergeyevich Yermakov, Aleksey Viktorovich Lukashev,  Sergey Aleksandrovich Morgachev, Nikolay Yuryevich Kozachek, Pavel Vyacheslavovich Yershov, Artem Andreyevich Malyshev, Aleksandr Vladimirovich Osadchuk, Aleksey Aleksandrovich Potemkin, and Anatoliy Sergeyevich Kovalev were officials in Unit 26165 and Unit 74455 of the Russian government’s Main Intelligence Directorate.

In 2016, officials in Unit 26165 began spearphishing volunteers and employees of the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton, including the campaign’s chairman. Through that process, officials in this unit were able to steal the usernames and passwords for numerous individuals and use those credentials to steal email content and hack into other computers. They also were able to hack into the computer networks of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) through these spearphishing techniques to steal emails and documents, covertly monitor the computer activity of dozens of employees, and implant hundreds of files of malicious computer code to steal passwords and maintain access to these networks.

The officials in Unit 26165 coordinated with officials in Unit 74455 to plan the release of the stolen documents for the purpose of interfering with the 2016 presidential election. Defendants registered the domain DCLeaks.com and later staged the release of thousands of stolen emails and documents through that website. On the website, defendants claimed to be “American hacktivists” and used Facebook accounts with fictitious names and Twitter accounts to promote the website.  After public accusations that the Russian government was behind the hacking of DNC and DCCC computers, defendants created the fictitious persona Guccifer 2.0. On the evening of June 15, 2016 between 4:19PM and 4:56PM, defendants used their Moscow-based server to search for a series of English words and phrases that later appeared in Guccifer 2.0’s first blog post falsely claiming to be a lone Romanian hacker responsible for the hacks in the hopes of undermining the allegations of Russian involvement.

Members of Unit 74455 also conspired to hack into the computers of state boards of elections, secretaries of state, and US companies that supplied software and other technology related to the administration of elections to steal voter data stored on those computers.

To avoid detection, defendants used false identities while using a network of computers located around the world, including the United States, paid for with cryptocurrency through mining bitcoin and other means intended to obscure the origin of the funds. This funding structure supported their efforts to buy key accounts, servers, and domains. For example, the same bitcoin mining operation that funded the registration payment for DCLeaks.com also funded the servers and domains used in the spearphishing campaign.

The indictment includes 11 criminal counts:

• Count One alleges a criminal conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States through cyber operations by the GRU that involved the staged release of stolen documents for the purpose of interfering with the 2016 president election;
• Counts Two through Nine charge aggravated identity theft for using identification belonging to eight victims to further their computer fraud scheme;
• Count Ten alleges a conspiracy to launder money in which the defendants laundered the equivalent of more than $95,000 by transferring the money that they used to purchase servers and to fund other costs related to their hacking activities through cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin; and
• Count Eleven charges conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States by attempting to hack into the computers of state boards of elections, secretaries of state, and US companies that supplied software and other technology related to the administration of elections.

There is no allegation in the indictment that any American was a knowing participant in the alleged unlawful activity or knew they were communicating with Russian intelligence officers. There is no allegation in the indictment that the charged conduct altered the vote count or changed the outcome of the 2016 election.

Everyone charged with a crime is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. At trial, prosecutors must introduce credible evidence that is sufficient to prove each defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, to the unanimous satisfaction of a jury of twelve citizens.

This case was investigated with the help of the FBI’s cyber teams in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and San Francisco and the National Security Division. The Special Counsel's investigation is ongoing. There will be no comments from the Special Counsel at this time.

A Collinsville, Virginia pharmacist pleaded guilty today to failing to account for and pay over employment taxes, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Thomas T. Cullen for the Western District of Virginia.

According to court documents, Jerry R. Harper, Jr., 61, owned and operated Family Discount Pharmacy, Inc. (FDP) in Stanleytown, Virginia, with multiple locations in Stuart, Rocky Mount, Chatham, and Brosville, Virginia.  As owner of FDP, Harper was responsible for collecting and paying over FDP’s employment taxes.  From 1998 through 2014, FDP accrued employment tax liabilities of more than $5 million.  Harper withheld these taxes from FDP employees’ wages, but did not pay the taxes to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  In over 15 years, Harper only filed one employment tax return with the IRS.   

Harper admitted that instead of providing the employment taxes to the IRS, he caused FDP to pay his personal expenses.  For example, Harper wired over $1 million to his personal bank account, made over $500,000 in stock market investments, spent over $100,000 on his son’s pharmacy school tuition, and purchased over $370,000 of real property in Virginia and North Carolina.  Harper also used part of the money to purchase a Jeep Grand Cherokee and a jet ski.

“Today’s guilty plea sends a clear message that this type of conduct will not be tolerated,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman.  “Employment tax violations represent tens of billions of dollars in lost revenue to the U.S. Treasury and the Justice Department is committed to prosecuting individuals involved in these tax frauds.”

Sentencing is scheduled for October 26, 2018.  Harper faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman and U.S. Attorney Cullen commended special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Tax Division Trial Attorney Daniel McGraw and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charlene Day, who are prosecuting the case.

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

HHS Secretary Alex Azar, DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued the following joint statement regarding reunification efforts for eligible children under 5 years old:

“Dedicated teams at the Departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, and Justice have worked tirelessly to ensure the safety of Ms. L class members. As of this morning, the initial reunifications were completed. Throughout the reunification process, our goal has been the well-being of the children and returning them to a safe environment. Our agencies’ careful vetting procedures helped prevent the reunification of children with an alleged murderer, an adult convicted of child cruelty, and adults determined not to be the parent of the child. Of course, there remains a tremendous amount of hard work and similar obstacles facing our teams in reuniting the remaining families. The Trump administration does not approach this mission lightly, and we intend to continue our good faith efforts to reunify families.

“Certain facts remain: The American people gave this administration a mandate to end the lawlessness at the border, and President Trump is keeping his promise to do exactly that. Our message has been clear all along: Do not risk your own life or the life of your child by attempting to enter the United States illegally. Apply lawfully and wait your turn.

“The American immigration system is the most generous in the world, but we are a nation of laws and we intend to continue enforcing those laws. Establishing the immigration system demanded of our political leaders by the American people for more than 30 years—one that serves the national interest—will allow our nation to further realize the foundation of freedom, safety, and prosperity we inherited from our Founders.”

Below are more details on HHS, DHS, and DOJ progress on reunification, as of 7 a.m. EST, July 12, 2018:

There are 103 children under age 5 covered by the court case. Of the 103 children:

• 57 children have been reunified as of 7 a.m. EST on July 12; and 
• 46 children were acknowledged by the court to be ineligible for reunification or determined by HHS, DHS, and DOJ to be ineligible under court-approved criteria.

Of those 46 ineligible for reunification:

22 children have been found ineligible due to safety concerns posed by the adults in question:

• 11 adults have a serious criminal history (charges or convictions for child cruelty, kidnapping, murder, human smuggling, domestic violence, etc.);
• 7 adults were determined not to be a parent;
• 1 adult had a falsified birth certificate;
• 1 adult was alleged to have abused the child;
• 1 adult planned to house the child with an adult charged with sexually abusing a child; and

• 1 adult is being treated for a communicable disease. 

24 children are not currently eligible for reunification due to circumstances of the adults in question:  

• 12 adults have been deported and are being contacted;
• 9 adults are in custody of the United States Marshals Service for other offenses;

• 2 adults are in custody of state jails for other offenses; and
• 1 adult's location has been unknown for over a year.

A Rogersville, Tennessee resident pleaded guilty today to filing a fraudulent multi-million dollar lien against a government employee and filing a false claim for a tax refund, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division. 

According to court documents, Brian Leo Snow failed to pay his federal tax liabilities for the years 2000 – 2008 and then became the subject of collection activity by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  After being held in contempt of court for failing to provide documents and records to the IRS, Snow filed false retaliatory liens claiming that various government officials, including an IRS revenue officer, an Assistant United States Attorney, and a United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of Tennessee owed him millions of dollars.  Each of these government officials had been involved in attempts to collect Snow’s back taxes.  Snow also filed three false claims with the IRS claiming over $144 million in tax refunds to which he was not entitled.  Snow owes the IRS over $150,000 in taxes. 

Sentencing is scheduled for November 28, 2018.  Snow faces a statutory maximum sentence of fifteen years in prison.  He also faces a term of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman commended special agents of the offices of Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration and IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Tax Division Senior Litigation Counsel Jen E. Ihlo and Trial Attorney Jason M. Scheff, who are prosecuting the case.

The president of a Michigan truck hauling business pleaded guilty today in Detroit federal district court to wire fraud and to willfully failing to file a tax return, announced Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Richard E. Zuckerman of the Justice Department’s Tax Division.

According to information presented in open court and filed documents, Arshawn Kenard Hall, a resident of Farmington, Michigan, operated a truck hauling business called RAMA Enterprise, Inc.  Hall was hired to transport plastic crates filled with automobile parts on behalf of an automobile company.  After transporting the parts, Hall was expected to return the empty crates to a facility in Detroit. Instead, Hall diverted these plastic crates and sold them to a plastic recycling company for approximately $460,000.  The actual value of the plastic crates that Hall stole was approximately $2,921,000.

In addition, Hall failed to file a 2012 federal income tax return on behalf of RAMA and failed to pay the taxes due.  The tax loss associated with Hall’s conduct is $142,069.

U.S. District Judge Terrence G. Berg scheduled sentencing for November 29, 2018.  Hall faces a statutory maximum sentence of twenty years in prison for his wire fraud conviction, and one year in prison for failing to file a tax return.  He also faces a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. 

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Zuckerman thanked special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation, who conducted the investigation, and Tax Division Trial Attorneys Abigail Burger Chingos and Kenneth C. Vert, who are prosecuting the case, as well as Tax Division Paralegal Tiffany Thompson.

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

A Nebraska man was sentenced yesterday to 76 months in prison for accessing with an intent to view child pornography, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Kelly of the District of Nebraska. 

Donald Blevins, 65, of Norfolk, Nebraska, pleaded guilty on April 4, to accessing with the intent to view child pornography.  U.S. District Court Judge John M. Gerrard of the District of Nebraska sentenced Blevins and also ordered him to serve 10 years of supervised release.

According to the admissions made in connection with his plea, Blevins admitted that he accessed a video conferencing platform multiple times between January 2016 and July 2017 to view child pornography. 

The charges are the result of an investigation by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.  The matter is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kaylynn N. Shoop of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael P. Norris of the District of Nebraska. 

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

Glenn Eugene Halfin, 64, from Grapevine, Texas, appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey L. Cureton in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas and pleaded guilty to a federal charge of interfering with an African-American family’s housing rights, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox of the Northern District of Texas.

According to court documents, Halfin threatened force, intimidated, and interfered with a family because of their race and occupancy of an apartment that was located directly above his own apartment. 

According to documents filed in connection with the guilty plea, on Dec. 19, 2017, Halfin purchased a baby doll at a Wal-Mart in Grapevine, Texas. He took a rope, fashioned it into a noose, and hung the baby doll from the noose. Halfin then hung the rope noose and baby doll on the railing directly in front of the only staircase the family could use to access their apartment. Halfin did so, knowing that this display would be particularly intimidating for the family who had a young daughter. In addition, the defendant referenced in his factual basis repeated intimidation of and interference with the same African-American family on other occasions.

“The Justice Department will not tolerate acts of intimidation and fear, or illegal threats against any individual or family because of their race,” said Acting Assistant Attorney John Gore. “We will continue to prosecute hate crime offenders.”

“No one should be afraid to go home at night,” said U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox.  “Our community will not tolerate crimes of intimidation or bigotry, and my office will continue to prosecute all those who persecute others based on their race, color, ethnicity, or religious beliefs.”

Halfin faces a statutory maximum penalty of no more one year in federal prison and a $100,000 fine. His sentencing is scheduled for October 24.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Grapevine Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Trial Attorney Rebekah Bailey of the Civil Rights Division’s Criminal Section and Assistant United States Attorney Nicole Dana.

A former head of a Philadelphia nonprofit mental health clinic was sentenced to 82 months in prison for perpetrating a multiyear fraud scheme through which she stole over $2 million from the clinic that she headed, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

On June 23, 2017, a jury found Renee Tartaglione, 62, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, guilty of 53 counts of conspiracy, fraud, theft and tax crimes.  Today, U.S. District Court Judge Joel H. Slomsky sentenced Tartaglione to serve 82 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.  In addition, Judge Slomsky ordered Tartaglione to forfeit $2,401,850 in proceeds from her scheme and to pay $2,339,691 in restitution to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, which will hold that money in trust until a successor charitable organization can be identified.

“Renee Tartaglione abused her position at a community clinic and stole over $2 million from important taxpayer-funded programs for individuals in need of mental health treatment,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan.  “Her conviction and sentence should send a clear message that the Department of Justice and our federal and state partners will aggressively work to bring to justice those who defraud institutions devoted to serving individuals in need.”

“The defendant funneled millions of dollars, meant to help economically disadvantaged people with mental health issues, into her own pockets to finance her comfortable lifestyle,” said U.S. Attorney McSwain. “Today’s sentence reinforces the basic precept that nonprofit organizations – especially those that provide important services to the disadvantaged – exist for the people they serve and not for the personal enrichment of their leaders.”

According to the evidence presented at trial, between 2007 and 2015, Tartaglione, as President of the Board of Directors of the Juniata Community Mental Health Clinic (JCMHC), defrauded and stole money from JCMHC through a series of actions designed to benefit her personally at the expense of the clinic.  Tartaglione purchased a building on 3rd Street in Philadelphia that housed the clinic and then raised the rent repeatedly, causing the clinic’s rent to increase from $4,500 per month to $25,000 per month.

Additionally, in 2010, Tartaglione’s company, Norris Hancock LLC, acquired an interest in a building on 5th Street, and Tartaglione began causing the clinic to spend money to improve that building.  In December 2012, Tartaglione leased the 5th Street building to JCMHC  for $35,000 per month for the first two years, and $75,000 per month for the next three years.  The rent Tartaglione charged the nonprofit clinic at both buildings was substantially higher than market rates.

None of the JCMHC rent increases or the lease agreements were approved by JCMHC’s Board of Directors.  The evidence further showed that Tartaglione and her co-conspirators created false and fictitious documents in an attempt to make the transactions appear legitimate.

This case was investigated by the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation, and the Philadelphia Office of the Inspector General.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bea Witzleben of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Trial Attorney Peter N. Halpern of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section.

          SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands (NMI), announced today that the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) for the United States Department of Justice has concluded an inquiry into the pretrial diversion practices of the United States Attorney’s Office in the District Court of Guam.  The OPR inquiry “revealed no evidence” that the pretrial diversion decisions of the office involved any prohibited or inappropriate factors.

          The inquiry was initiated by the District Court of Guam during sentencing proceedings for two Chinese nationals in United States v. Lu et al., No. 17-CR-00041 (D. Guam). The defendants had been arrested after arriving on Guam from Los Angeles with over 118 counterfeit credit cards from foreign banks. The defendants were charged with Possession of Fifteen or More Counterfeit or Unauthorized Access Devices, in violation of 18 U.S.C. Section 1029(a)(3), a Class C felony. The Court questioned the applicability of pretrial diversion for the defendants. Diversion is an alternative to criminal prosecution that enables certain offenders to avoid traditional criminal proceedings in favor of a program of supervision and services administered by United States Probation and Pretrial Services. If the program is successfully completed, the charges against a defendant are dismissed. The U.S. Attorney declined to offer pretrial diversion in the matters before the District Court.

          In February 2018, the Court announced that it would request the Department of Justice to investigate whether there was “disparate treatment” by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in its handling of pretrial diversion offers. OPR reviewed the Court’s concerns and the relevant pretrial diversion decisions against the limits on prosecutorial discretion set forth in the Department’s United States Attorneys’ Manual Section 9-27.260, which prohibits prosecutors from taking into consideration a “person’s race, religion, gender, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, or political association, activities, or beliefs.” OPR found no evidence of unethical conduct.

          United States Attorney Anderson states, “We appreciated the opportunity to fully cooperate with OPR and respond to the Court’s concerns. Prosecutorial discretion, which includes the decision on whether pretrial diversion is appropriate in any given case, has an important function in the criminal justice system. The U.S. Attorney’s Office respects the limitations on its discretion and routinely relies on the Department of Justice’s guidelines in making diversion decisions. Our office will continue to consider criminal offenders for this type of disposition on a case-by-case basis.”

Attorney General Jeff Sessions today announced Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S.), a new program that seeks to reduce the supply of deadly synthetic opioids in high impact areas and to identify wholesale distribution networks and international and domestic suppliers.

As part of Operation S.O.S., the Department will launch an enforcement surge in ten districts with some of the highest drug overdose death rates. Each participating United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) will choose a specific county and prosecute every readily provable case involving the distribution of fentanyl, fentanyl analogues, and other synthetic opioids, regardless of drug quantity. The surge will involve a coordinated DEA Special Operations Division operation to insure that leads from street-level cases are used to identify larger scale distributors. Operation S.O.S. was inspired by a promising initiative of the United States Attorney’s Office in the Middle District of Florida involving Manatee County, Florida. 

"We at the Department of Justice are going to dismantle these deadly fentanyl distribution networks. Simply put, we will be tireless until we reduce the number of overdose deaths in this country. We are going to focus on some of the worst counties for opioid overdose deaths in the United States, working all cases until we have disrupted the supply of these deadly drugs," Attorney General Sessions said. "In 2016, synthetic opioids killed more Americans than any other kind of drug. Three milligrams of fentanyl can be fatal--that's not even enough to cover up Lincoln's face on a penny. Our prosecutors in Manatee County, Florida have shown that prosecuting seemingly small synthetic opioids cases can have a big impact and save lives, and we want to replicate their success in the districts that need it most. Operation S.O.S.—and the new prosecutors who will help carry it out—will help us put more traffickers behind bars and keep the American people safe from the threat of these deadly drugs."

In addition, the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Executive Office will send an additional two-year term Assistant United States Attorney to each participating district to assist with drug-related prosecutions.

The ten participating districts are:

• Eastern District of California
• Eastern District of Kentucky
• District of Maine
• District of New Hampshire
• Northern District of Ohio
• Southern District of Ohio
• Western District of Pennsylvania
• Eastern District of Tennessee
• Northern District of West Virginia
• Southern District of West Virginia

In Manatee County, a county just south of Tampa with a population of about 320,000, overdoses and deaths skyrocketed in 2015 (780 overdoses/84 opioid related deaths) and 2016 (1,287 overdoses/123 opioid related deaths). In summer of 2016, local law enforcement reported frequent, street-level distribution of fentanyl and carfentanil for the first time.

To combat this crisis, the Middle District of Florida committed to prosecuting every readily provable drug distribution case involving synthetic opioids in Manatee County regardless of drug quantity. The effort resulted in the indictments of forty five traffickers of synthetic opioids. Further, from the last six months of 2016 to the last six months of 2017, overdoses dropped by 77.1% and deaths dropped by 74.2%. Overall, the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office went from responding to 11 overdoses a day to an average now of less than one per day.  

A federal grand jury in Riverside, California, returned a five-count indictment against Eric Scott Kindley, 50, a private prisoner transport officer, for crimes related to his sexual assaults of two different females in his custody during two different transports, and for brandishing his firearm during one of the sexual assaults.

Count One of the indictment charges Kindley with committing a civil rights offense on July 26, 2012, that included aggravated sexual abuse and kidnapping. Counts Two, Three, and Four charge Kindley with committing civil rights offenses on Jan. 26, 2017, against a second female that included aggravated sexual abuse. Count Two also alleges that Kindley’s crime resulted in bodily injury and included kidnapping and the use of a dangerous weapon. Count Five charges Kindley with knowingly brandishing and using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence.

Kindley was previously indicted on Sept. 12, 2017, in Little Rock, Arkansas, for committing similar offenses related to his sexual assault of a third female in his custody. That indictment also charges Kindley with possessing his firearm in furtherance of that sexual assault.

If convicted of the charges in the most recent indictment, Kindley faces a mandatory minimum sentence of seven years in prison for brandishing his firearm, and a maximum sentence of life in prison. If convicted of the charges pending in Arkansas, Kindley faces a mandatory minimum of sentence of five years in prison for possession of the firearm, and a maximum sentence of life in prison. If Kindley is convicted of the firearms offenses in both indictments, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in prison, consecutive to any other sentence he receives.

This investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with additional information is encouraged to call the Phoenix Division of the FBI at (623) 466-1999, or email the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division at the U.S. Department of Justice at Prisoner.Transfer@usdoj.gov.

An indictment is merely a formal accusation of criminal conduct, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

This case is being investigated by the Phoenix Division of the Federal Bureau Investigation and is being prosecuted by Special Litigation Counsel Fara Gold and Trial Attorney Maura White of the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein today announced the establishment of a new Task Force on Market Integrity and Consumer Fraud.  The Task Force, which is formed pursuant to Presidential Executive Order, will provide guidance for the investigation and prosecution of cases involving fraud on the government, the financial markets, and consumers, including cyber-fraud and other fraud targeting the elderly, service members and veterans, and other members of the public; procurement and grant fraud; securities and commodities fraud, as well as other corporate fraud, with particular attention to fraud affecting the general public; digital currency fraud; money laundering, including the recovery of proceeds; health care fraud; tax fraud; and other financial crimes.  

Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein was joined in the announcement by Acting Director Mick Mulvaney of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, Chairman Jay Clayton of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Chairman Joe Simons of the Federal Trade Commission.

“Fraud committed by companies and their employees has a devastating impact on American citizens in the financial markets, the health care sector, and elsewhere,” said Deputy Attorney General Rosenstein.  “The President’s order directs the Task Force to invite participation from our law enforcement partners at many departments and agencies.  By working together, we can achieve more effective and efficient outcomes.  Drawing on our pooled resources, including subject-matter expertise, data repositories, and analysts and investigators, we can identify and stop fraud on a wider scale than any one agency acting alone.”  

“As Acting Director of the Bureau, one of my top priorities has been to go after bad actors,” said Acting Director Mick Mulvaney of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. “The Bureau takes its mandate to enforce the law seriously, and the Bureau will continue to apply the law to achieve this end of combatting fraud against Americans. The recent settlement with Wells Fargo is a great example of the Bureau coordinating closely with sister regulators to remedy legal violations.  Interagency cooperation is incredibly important for these complex issues, as criminals do not stay neatly within state lines or even national borders. This task force is an example of the growing cooperation of the Bureau’s work with other federal and state authorities to combat a multitude of bad actors out there today.”

“At the SEC we work every day to protect Main Street investors,” said SEC Chairman Clayton. “This Task Force will allow us to build on the close partnerships we have with our fellow regulators and law enforcement agencies to deter and combat retail fraud.”

“Stopping fraud against consumers is at the heart of the FTC’s mission,” said FTC Chairman Joe Simons.   “To combat these problems, the Commission has developed a multi-faceted strategy: we bring enforcement actions to protect consumers; and we engage in education initiatives to help the general public, the elderly and service members detect and avoid scams. The FTC looks forward to further collaboration with the Department of Justice and other agencies through participation in this Task Force, so we can leverage our skills and resources to protect as many consumers as possible.”

The Task Force will be led by the Deputy Attorney General, who serves as Chair, and the Associate Attorney General, who serves as Vice Chair.  In the performance of its functions, the Task Force is directed to invite participation from the Departments of Treasury, Defense, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Energy, Education, Veterans Affairs, and Homeland Security, as well as the Small Business Administration, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Social Security Administration, the United States Agency for International Development, the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the General Services Administration, the National Credit Union Administration, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Board of Directors of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, and the Postal Inspection Service.

The Department of Justice today announced the finalization of an April proposal to improve the Drug Enforcement Administration’s ability to control the diversion of dangerous drugs in the midst of the national opioid crisis. Announced in April by Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the final rule sent for publication today in the Federal Register establishes that DEA will take into consideration the extent that a drug is diverted for abuse when it sets its annual opioid production limits.

If DEA believes that that a particular opioid or a particular company’s opioids are being diverted for misuse, this allows DEA to reduce the amount that can be produced in a given year. These revised limits will encourage vigilance on the part of opioid manufacturers, help DEA respond to the changing drug threat environment, and protect the American people from potentially addictive drugs while ensuring that the country has enough opioids for genuine medical, scientific, research and industrial needs.

"The opioid epidemic that we are facing today is the worst drug crisis in American history," Attorney General Sessions said. "To help end it, DEA must make sure that we prevent diversion and abuse of prescription opioids. Today's new rule, by taking diversion of these opioids into account, will allow the DEA to be more responsive to the facts on the ground. More importantly, it will help us stop and even prevent diversion from taking place. The American people can be confident that we are now better equipped to protect them from dangerous drugs and that this rule brings us one step closer to finally ending this unprecedented crisis."

“These common-sense actions directly respond to the national opioid epidemic by allowing DEA to use drug diversion as a basis to evaluate whether a drug’s production should be reduced,” said DEA Acting Administrator Uttam Dhillon. “This also opens the door for increased communication and better information sharing between DEA and individual states, as we work together to address the opioid problem plaguing our country.” 

The final rule enhances the roles for the state attorneys general. It requires DEA to share notices of proposed aggregate production quotas, and final aggregate production quota orders, to the state attorneys general. It also allows for a hearing if necessary to resolve an issue of material fact raised by a state’s objection to a proposed aggregate production quota as excessive in relation to legitimate U.S. need.

DEA also announced that the final rule allows DEA to consider relevant information from the Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, as well as relevant information from the states.

Following April’s announcement of the proposed rule changes, DEA received more than 1,600 public comments in response. 
 

NOTE: To view the advance text of the final rule as approved by the Acting Administrator and submitted for publication in the Federal Register click here. 

Attorney General Jeff Sessions today welcomed the confirmation of Brian Allen Benczkowski as the Department of Justice’s Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division.

“Brian is an outstanding lawyer with a diverse public service and criminal law background spanning over 20 years,” said Attorney General Sessions.  “This will be the sixth senior position Brian has held at the Department, and we are fortunate to have someone with his breadth of experience and strong leadership skills willing to serve again. At a time like this—with surging violent crime and an unprecedented drug epidemic—this position is especially important.”

Mr. Benczkowski’s diverse legal background including over 10 years of public service experience in the federal government in key leadership positions.  He previously served as the Chief of Staff for the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Deputy Attorney General from 2008 to 2009. As the principal legal, policy and political advisor to the two senior leaders of the Department of Justice, he played an integral role in overseeing the overall direction of the Department, including operational, policy and public relations efforts. Mr. Benczkowski, 48, has also served as Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs, where he managed the Department’s relationship with Congress. During that time, he was responsible for directing the Department's response to congressional investigations and requests for information and documents, and preparing numerous witnesses and nominees for testimony before Congress. Mr. Benczkowski also served as chief of staff at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and staff director and senior counsel to the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Policy.

Prior to his nomination by the President to serve as the Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, Mr. Benczkowski served as a partner in a large Washington, DC law firm where Mr. Benczkowski’s practice focused on white-collar criminal defense as well as government and internal investigations.  Mr. Benczkowski received his J.D., with high honors, from the Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, Missouri, and his B.A. from the University of Virginia.

The Justice Department today announced that it has filed a lawsuit alleging that Randy Hames, a residential property owner and landlord in Cullman, Alabama, subjected female tenants to egregious sexual harassment in violation of the Fair Housing Act.  Along with Randy Hames, the Department’s complaint names his residential property company, Hames Marina, LLC, as a defendant. 

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, alleges that since at least 2011, Hames sexually harassed numerous women who lived in the defendants’ residential property. The suit alleges that Hames’s conduct included demanding or pressuring female tenants to engage in sexual acts with him in exchange for rent or to prevent eviction; evicting female tenants when they refused his advances; making female tenants feel unsafe by stalking them and entering their residences without permission; and making unwelcome sexual comments and advances.

“Subjecting female tenants to harassment and demands for sex is offensive and illegal,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. “The Justice Department will continue its vigorous enforcement of the Fair Housing Act against landlords who engage in this reprehensible conduct. No woman should feel unsafe in her own home.” 

“The alleged behavior of Randy Hames is abhorrent and repulsive. We will not let women, or any person, in our district be threatened, harassed, or retaliated against by landlords,” said U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town for the Northern District of Alabama. “The Fair Housing Act is an extraordinary tool that allows the Department of Justice to protect all tenants from egregious misconduct, like sexual harassment, and we will continue to strongly enforce all violations of it.”

The Justice Department’s Sexual Harassment in Housing Initiative (SHHI) was launched in October 2017 and expanded nationally in April 2018.  The initiative specifically seeks to increase the Department’s efforts to protect individuals from harassment by landlords, property managers, maintenance workers, security guards, loan officers, or other people who have control over housing.  The Justice Department has filed or settled 10 sexual harassment cases and has recovered over $1.6 million for victims of sexual harassment in housing since Jan. 20, 2017.  Today’s lawsuit seeks monetary damages to compensate the victims, civil penalties, and a court order barring future discrimination. The complaint contains allegations of unlawful conduct. The allegations must be proven in federal court.

Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of sexual harassment or discrimination at rental dwellings owned or operated by Randy Hames or Hames Marina, or who have other information that may be relevant to this case, should contact the Housing Discrimination Tip Line, by calling 1-800-896-7743, pressing 1 to continue in English, and selecting mailbox 7 to leave a message.

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status.  More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at http://www.justice.gov/crt. 

Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of sexual harassment in housing should call the Justice Department at 1-844-380-6178, send an e-mail to fairhousing@usdoj.gov, or contact the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) at 1-800-669-9777.  If you have information or questions about any other housing discrimination, you can contact the Justice Department at 1-800-896-7743.

Health Quest Systems, Inc. and certain of its subsidiaries (Health Quest) and Putnam Health Center (PHC) have agreed to pay over $14.7 million to resolve allegations of violations of the False Claims Act by submitting inflated and otherwise ineligible claims for payment, the Justice Department announced today.  New-York based Health Quest is a family of integrated hospitals and healthcare providers that deliver surgical, medical and home health care services.  PHC is a Health Quest subsidiary hospital based in Carmel Hamlet, New York. 

“This resolution is a testament to our deep commitment to protecting the integrity of federally- funded healthcare programs,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad A. Readler for the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “We are determined to hold accountable healthcare providers that knowingly claim taxpayer funds to which they are not entitled.”

In the settlement announced today, Health Quest and PHC admitted, acknowledged, and accepted responsibility for certain facts involving the submission of improper claims for various health-related services, including the following:  

From April 1, 2009 through June 23, 2015, Health Quest submitted claims for evaluation and management services but did not sufficiently document the services to support the level of service billed.  As a result, the services were billed two levels higher than supported by the medical record.  

From April 1, 2011 through August 2014, Health Quest submitted claims for home health services that lacked sufficient medical records to support the claim, including documentation of a face-to-face encounter with a physician.  

From March 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014, Health Quest subsidiary hospital, PHC, submitted allegedly false claims for inpatient and outpatient services referred to PHC by two orthopedic physicians, in alleged violation of the Physician Self-Referral Law.  The two physicians had a direct financial relationship with PHC for providing administrative services and received compensation from PHC.  The United States alleged their compensation exceeded the fair market value for the services, and thereby violated the Physician Self-Referral Law, which prohibits a hospital from billing Medicare for certain services referred by physicians with whom the hospital has an improper compensation arrangement. The United States further alleged that one purpose of the excessive compensation was to induce the above referrals to PHC, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute.

“Today’s settlement holds Heath Quest responsible for false billings to federally funded health care programs, as well as claims tainted by a hospital’s payments to two physicians for administrative services where it appears that one purpose of those payments was to improperly induce referrals.  Hospitals and providers must be vigilant to make sure that claims accurately reflect medical services provided and are supported by sufficient documentation.  We will continue to investigate whistleblower complaints vigorously to protect public funds,” said United States Attorney Grant C. Jaquith for the Northern District of New York.

As part of the settlements announced today, Health Quest will pay an additional $895,427 to the State of New York, which jointly funds the State’s Medicaid program with the federal government. 

Contemporaneously with the False Claims Act settlement, Health Quest also agreed to enter into a Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) with HHS-OIG to address future compliance.

“Government health program dollars are precious and need to be carefully guarded,” said Scott J. Lampert, Special Agent in Charge for the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG).  “Working closely with our law enforcement partners we will fight for the integrity of these taxpayer-funded programs.”

The settlement resolves three lawsuits brought by former employees of Health Quest under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private citizens to bring lawsuits on behalf of the United States and obtain a portion of the government’s recovery.  Tim Cleary will receive $1,893,092, John Betaudier and Carolyn Carroll will receive, collectively, $56,266, and Gregory Folta will receive at least $875,546.  

The lawsuits, are captioned:  United States, et al. ex rel. Folta v. Health Quest Systems, Inc., et al., No. 1:15-cv-396 (N.D.N.Y.); United States, et al. ex rel. Cleary v. Health Quest Systems, Inc., et al., No. 16-cv-76 (N.D.N.Y.); and United States, et al. ex rel. Betaudier and Carroll v. Health Quest Medical, Practice, P.C., et al., No. 1:16-cv-1344 (N.D.N.Y.).

The federal government’s resolution of these matters illustrate 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).

These matters were investigated by the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch; the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York; HHS-OIG; the FBI; and the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General. 

The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division today filed a motion and supporting papers, seeking to terminate 19 “legacy” judgments in the District Court for the District of Columbia.  Today’s court filing is part of the Antitrust Division’s effort to terminate decades-old antitrust judgments that no longer serve their original purpose.  

“Today we have taken an important next step toward eliminating antitrust judgments that no longer protect competition,” said Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust, Makan Delrahim.  “Today’s filing is the first of many that we will make in courts around the country in our effort to terminate obsolete judgments.”  

In its motion filed today, the Antitrust Division explained that perpetual judgments rarely continue to protect competition, and those that are more than ten years old should be terminated absent compelling circumstances.  Other reasons for terminating the judgments include that essential terms of the judgment have been satisfied, most defendants likely no longer exist, the judgment largely prohibits that which the antitrust laws already prohibit, and market conditions likely have changed.  Each of these reasons suggests the judgments no longer serve to protect competition.  

The Antitrust Division announced in April its initiative to terminate legacy antitrust judgments, stating that it would review all such judgments to identify those that no longer serve to protect competition.  In its prior announcement, the Antitrust Division set forth the process by which it would seek the termination of outdated judgments.  It also established a new public website (https://www.justice.gov/atr/JudgmentTermination) to serve as the primary source of information for the public regarding the initiative.  

At the time that the Antitrust Division announced the initiative, it posted on its public website the legacy judgments in federal district court in Washington, D.C. and in Alexandria, Virginia.  After a 30-day public comment period, the Antitrust Division concluded that termination of these 19 judgments is appropriate.   

Since the announcement of its initiative, the Antitrust Division has posted for public comment judgments in 19 additional federal district courts.  It will continue to post judgments periodically as review of those judgments by Antitrust Division attorneys is completed.  

Members of the public are encouraged regularly to check the Antitrust Division’s Judgment Termination page on its website, www.justice.gov/atr/JudgmentTermination, for updates.  Members of the public also may subscribe to the mailing list (https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDOJ/subscriber/new) to receive notice of new postings to the website, including judgments that the Division has identified as appropriate for termination.  
 

The U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) announced today that two subsidiaries of Stanley Black & Decker Inc.—Emhart Industries Inc. and Black & Decker Inc.—have agreed to clean up dioxin contaminated sediment and soil at the Centredale Manor Restoration Project Superfund Site in North Providence and Johnston, Rhode Island. 

“We are pleased to reach a resolution through collaborative work with the responsible parties, EPA, and other stakeholders,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey H. Wood for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division . “Today’s settlement ends protracted litigation and allows for important work to get underway to restore a healthy environment for citizens living in and around the Centredale Manor Site and the Woonasquatucket River.”

“This settlement demonstrates the tremendous progress we are achieving working with responsible parties, states, and our federal partners to expedite sites through the entire Superfund remediation process,” said EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler. “The Centredale Manor Site has been on the National Priorities List for 18 years; we are taking charge and ensuring the Agency makes good on its promise to clean it up for the betterment of the environment and those communities affected.”

“Successfully concluding this settlement paves the way for EPA to make good on our commitment to aggressively pursue cleaning up the Centredale Manor Superfund Site,” said EPA New England Regional Administrator Alexandra Dunn. “We are excited to get to work on the cleanup at this site, and get it closer to the goal of being fully utilized by the North Providence and Johnston communities.”

“We are pleased that the collective efforts of the State of Rhode Island, EPA, and DOJ in these negotiations have concluded in this major milestone toward the cleanup of the Centredale Manor Restoration Superfund site and are consistent with our long-standing efforts to make the polluter pay,” said RIDEM Director Janet Coit. “The settlement will speed up a remedy that protects public health and the river environment, and moves us closer to the day that we can reclaim recreational uses of this beautiful river resource.”

The settlement, which includes cleanup work in the Woonasquatucket River (River) and bordering residential and commercial properties along the River, requires the companies to perform the remedy selected by EPA for the Site in 2012, which is estimated to cost approximately $100 million, and resolves longstanding litigation.

The cleanup remedy includes excavation of contaminated sediment and floodplain soil from the Woonasquatucket River, including from adjacent residential properties. Once the cleanup remedy is completed, full access to the Woonasquatucket River should be restored for local citizens. The cleanup will be a step toward the State’s goal of a fishable and swimmable river. The work will also include upgrading caps over contaminated soil in the peninsula area of the Site that currently house two high-rise apartment buildings. The settlement also ensures that the long-term monitoring and maintenance of the site, as directed in the remedy, will be implemented to ensure that public health is protected. 

Under the settlement, Emhart and Black & Decker will reimburse EPA for approximately $42 million in past costs incurred at the Site. The companies will also reimburse EPA and the State of Rhode Island for future costs incurred by those agencies in overseeing the work required by the settlement. The settlement will also include payments on behalf of two federal agencies to resolve claims against those agencies. These payments, along with prior settlements related to the Site, will result in a 100 percent recovery for the United States of its past and future response costs related to the Site.

Litigation related to the Site has been ongoing for nearly eight years. While the Federal District Court found Black & Decker and Emhart to be liable for their hazardous waste and responsible to conduct the cleanup of the Site, it had also ruled that EPA needed to reconsider certain aspects of that cleanup. EPA appealed the decision requiring it to reconsider aspects of the cleanup. This settlement, once entered by the District Court, will resolve the litigation between the United States, Rhode Island, and Emhart and Black and Decker, allowing the cleanup of the Site to begin.

The Site spans a one and a half mile stretch of the Woonasquatucket River and encompasses a nine-acre peninsula, two ponds and a significant forested wetland. From the 1940s to the early 1970s, Emhart’s predecessor operated a chemical manufacturing facility on the peninsula and used a raw material that was contaminated with 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, a toxic form of dioxin. The Site property was also previously used by a barrel refurbisher. Elevated levels of dioxins and other contaminants have been detected in soil, groundwater, sediment, surface water and fish. 

The Site was added to the National Priorities List (NPL) in 2000, and in December 2017, EPA included the Centredale Manor Restoration Project Superfund Site on a list of Superfund sites targeted for immediate and intense attention. Several short-term actions were previously performed at the Site to address immediate threats to the residents and minimize potential erosion and downstream transport of contaminated soil and sediment. This settlement is the latest agreement EPA has reached since the Site was listed on the NPL. Prior agreements addressed the performance and recovery of costs for the past environmental investigations and interim cleanup actions from Emhart, the barrel reconditioning company, the current owners of the peninsula portion of the Site, and other potentially responsible parties.

The Consent Decree, lodged in the U.S. District Court of Rhode Island, will be posted in the Federal Register and available for public comment for a period of 30 days. The Consent Decree can be viewed on the Justice Department website: www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html. 

EPA information on the Centredale Manor Superfund Site: www.epa.gov/superfund/centredale.

ALEXANDRIA, La. – United States Attorney David C. Joseph announced today that an inmate originally from California was sentenced to 240 months in prison for attempting to kill two staff members at the U.S. Penitentiary in Pollock.

Charles Lee White, 47, an inmate at the U.S. Penitentiary in Pollock, Louisiana, and who was formerly from Vallejo, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dee D. Drell on two counts of attempted murder of a federal employee. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release. During a three-day trial that ended March 28, 2018, evidence admitted showed White and another inmate attacked two prison staff members on January 13, 2017. The staff members were conducting a health and welfare inspection of a housing unit when they noticed an inmate’s cell had a large surplus of commissary items and contraband items.  The staff members decided to do a more detailed search of the cell, and were in the process of searching, when one inmate, a member of the California Crips, confronted the staff members.  The staff members told the inmate to leave. He left for a while and then confronted the staff members a second time. Both staff members came out of the cell with the first staff member backing out of the cell while facing the inmate who had assumed a fighting stance and was refusing commands from staff.  The second staff member was behind the inmate. 

While the first staff member was facing the inmate, White, also a California Crip, snuck up from behind, punched the first staff member in the back of the head knocking him to the ground. White then pulled a homemade weapon, otherwise known as a shank, and stabbed the first staff member multiple times in the torso, arm and shoulder while saying he was going to kill him. The other inmate attacked the second staff member punching and biting him.  After stabbing the first staff member, White stabbed the second staff member while he was struggling with the other inmate.   White stabbed the second staff member in the torso and back and stabbed the other inmate in the arm.  At this point, other staff responded and sprayed White with pepper spray.  White refused to surrender, and continued to move around the unit with the shank in his hand.  White returned to the second staff member and stabbed him again.  Additional staff responded to the housing unit, gave commands to surrender, and sprayed both inmates with pepper spray after the commands were ignored.  Both inmates were finally detained, and the shank was recovered as evidence.  The inmates were taken to medical and assessed for injuries, which White had none.  The other inmate refused medical treatment from the Pollock medical staff.  The two staff members were transported to the emergency room at a local hospital to assess and treat their injuries and survived.

White is already serving a life sentence for a RICO conviction that included counts of murder and attempted murder.

The FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike O’Mara prosecuted the case.

A federal grand jury in Lexington, Kentucky, today returned a four-count indictment charging Jamie Derickson, a former deputy of the Powell County Detention Center, with violating the civil rights of an arrestee by conspiring with inmates at the detention center to assault the arrestee in a jail cell. Derickson is also charged with lying to the FBI about the assault.

The indictment alleges that on Aug. 17, 2016, Derickson conspired with several inmates in the jail, agreeing that the inmates would assault the arrestee after Derickson placed him in the cell. When the arrestee entered the cell, the inmates assaulted the arrestee, causing bodily injury. The indictment also alleges that Derickson violated the arrestee’s constitutional rights by aiding and abetting the inmates’ assault of the arrestee, and by being deliberately indifferent to the known serious risk that the victim would be assaulted.  Finally, the indictment alleges that Derickson later lied to special agents of the FBI when he claimed to them that, at the time he placed the arrestee in the cell, he did not know that the inmates were going to assault him.

If convicted, Derickson faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years for each civil rights offense and five years for lying to investigators.

An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

The FBI conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Hydee Hawkins of the Eastern District of Kentucky and Trial Attorney Zachary Dembo of the Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case.

The Department of Justice today announced that it recently entered into a settlement with the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the Kentucky State Board of Elections, and the Kentucky Secretary of State, resolving the Department’s claims that Kentucky was not complying with the voter registration list maintenance procedures set forth in Section 8 of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (NVRA). Under the terms of the settlement, Kentucky will develop and implement a general program of statewide voter list maintenance that makes a reasonable effort to remove the names of registrants who have become ineligible due to a change in residence in accordance with Section 8 of the NVRA and state law.

The NVRA includes requirements for maintaining voter registration lists in elections for federal office. One of these NVRA requirements is that states make a reasonable effort to remove registrants who have become ineligible due to having died or moved. At the same time, the NVRA has protections to ensure that eligible voters remain on the rolls, including specific procedures that states must follow before removing voters who have moved to a new jurisdiction.

The Justice Department’s investigation found that, since 2009, Kentucky has not sent statutorily-required notices to registrants under the change-of-address process contemplated by the NVRA and state law. The investigation also found that, since 2015, Kentucky has not removed registrants through this statutorily-prescribed process when the registrants have moved to a new jurisdiction without notifying election officials.  

The settlement requires the Kentucky State Board of Elections to create and implement a comprehensive plan, setting forth specific list maintenance procedures to be followed in the future, in accordance with the requirements and voter protections set forth by the NVRA. Such procedures must include a plan to obtain and use change-of-address information at least once per year. The comprehensive plan must also include procedures for sending a canvass mailing this summer to identify through returned mail those registrants who may have moved, as well as public outreach practices to educate voters about the importance of updating their voter registration when they change residences. The agreement also requires reporting of various information and data relating to the State Board’s list maintenance activities. The parties will submit the settlement to a federal judge for court approval.

“The NVRA’s list maintenance procedures ensure accurate and current voter registration rolls,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. “The Civil Rights Division commends Kentucky for working with the Division to ensure its voter registration list accurately reflects its eligible registrants, consistent with the protections and procedures of the NVRA.”

On June 28, 2017, the Justice Department sent letters to all 44 states covered by the NVRA requesting information regarding their efforts to comply with Section 8’s list maintenance requirements. The Department opened this investigation after receiving Kentucky’s response to that letter. This settlement is the Department’s first resolution of a Section 8 matter since it sent the letters.

More information about the National Voter Registration Act and other federal voting laws is available on the Department of Justice website at https://www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section. Complaints about voter registration practices may be reported to the Civil Rights Division at 1-800-253-3931.

Two executives have been arrested in Miami on charges of conspiring to fix prices for international freight forwarding services, the Department of Justice announced.

A criminal complaint was unsealed on June 29 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana against Roberto Dip and Jason Handal.  Dip is the owner and CEO, and Handal is a manager, of a freight forwarding company that operates in ports throughout the United States, including New Orleans.  At a detention hearing before a magistrate judge in Florida on July 3, Dip was ordered detained pending trial, and Handal was released on conditions including a $500,000 personal surety bond. 

According to the criminal complaint, Dip and Handal participated in a conspiracy among freight forwarding companies from at least as early as March 2014 until at least March 2015.  Freight forwarders arrange for and manage the shipment of goods, including by receiving, packaging, and otherwise preparing cargo destined for international shipment.

“As these arrests show, the Division and its law enforcement partners are committed to prosecuting senior executives who conspire to cheat American customers in vital international industries,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. 

According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, the conspirators met at several locations in Honduras and the United States, including New Orleans.  At these meetings, the conspirators discussed and agreed to raise prices charged to U.S. customers, to be implemented by establishing “commissions” in port cities throughout the United States to coordinate and agree on the specific rates charged to customers in each port.  According to the affidavit, this conduct is memorialized in emails and other documents.  Emails allegedly show that Dip and Handal were aware that their conduct was in violation of U.S. antitrust laws and that they instructed co-conspirators to avoid leaving written evidence of their conduct.  

Charges contained in a criminal complaint are merely allegations that a defendant has committed a violation of criminal law.  All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The ongoing investigation into price-fixing in the international freight forwarding industry is being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal I Section, the FBI’s International Corruption Unit, and the FBI’s New Orleans Division.  Anyone with information in connection with this investigation is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal I Section at 202-307-6694, visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html or call the FBI tip line at 415-553-7400.   

A federal grand jury sitting in Greensboro, North Carolina last week returned five indictments charging six Richmond County, North Carolina men who were arrested yesterday on charges including possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, drug distribution, and Hobbs Act robbery.

These indictments were the result of a coordinated effort among federal, state, and local law enforcement intended to reduce violent and gun-related crime in the Richmond County area, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General John P. Cronan of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. 

In 2017, security concerns prompted the City of Hamlet, North Carolina, to abruptly cancel its July 4th festivities.  News of the 2017 Hamlet July 4th cancellation garnered public attention, and Attorney General Sessions, speaking at a gang conference in Winston-Salem on Aug. 17, 2017, remarked, “I heard recently about Hamlet, North Carolina, where this year’s annual Independence Day celebration was canceled suddenly because of threats of gang violence.  This is in a town of about 7,000 people.  I certainly respect the decision of the city leaders, but it is infuriating and wrong to me that they had to make it.  This is America.  We will not be held hostage in our homes by gangsters.”  The Attorney General pledged to provide assistance to combat that violence, and the cases announced today are a direct result of that pledge.

“At the direction of the Attorney General, the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division dispatched a team of prosecutors to assist federal and local law enforcement officials in central North Carolina to address violent criminal activity in the area,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Cronan.  “It is our hope that that the Criminal Division’s efforts—together with those of our federal and local partners—will lead to a decrease in crime, result in accountability for violent offenders, and lead to safer streets and communities.”     

On June 25, the grand jury returned indictments against six individuals including:

• Quandon Ha’son Wilson, 26, and Devion Marquis Ward, 22, both of Rockingham, North Carolina, were charged with one count of obstructing, delaying, and affecting commerce and the movement of any article and commodity in commerce, by robbery or extortion in connection with the robbery of Duncan’s Food Store in Rockingham on Jan. 8.  Wilson and Ward are also charged with one count of using, carrying, or possessing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence;
• Quiteraus Dequan Gardner, 22, of Hamlet, was charged with one count of felon in possession of a firearm;
• Sajuan Deangelo Leslie, 29, of Rockingham, was charged with one count of felon in possession of a firearm;  
• Trevon Ibe-Deonte Leslie, 23, of Rockingham, was charged with one count of felon in possession of a firearm, one count of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, and one count of using, carrying, or possessing a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime; and  
• Hikeem Idrise-Lamar Byrd, 24, of Rockingham, was charged in a four-count indictment with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine base; two counts of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base, and one count of felon in possession of a firearm.

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

The cases indicted this month were investigated by the Hamlet Police Department, Rockingham Police Department, Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, North Carolina Department of Public Safety, FBI, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Federal law enforcement officials are also grateful to Assistant District Attorneys from the the Richmond County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance.  The cases are being prosecuted by Washington, D.C.-based Trial Attorneys Jay Bauer, Erin Cox, Ivana Nizich, Jamie Perry and Sasha Rutizer of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. 

The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit seeking to revoke the naturalized U.S. citizenship of an individual convicted of providing material support to terrorists by, among other means, traveling abroad with the intent to murder or maim U.S. military forces in Iraq or Afghanistan. According to the civil complaint filed in federal court in the Northern District of Illinois, the individual allegedly concealed this conduct and other actions during his naturalization proceedings.

“The United States will use every available law enforcement tool to combat terrorism,” said Acting Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio. “Those who are naturalized in the United States swear to support and defend our Constitution and laws against all enemies. Those who have actively supported terrorism and concealed that fact cannot take that oath in good faith and should not have the benefit of continued citizenship.  Civil denaturalization is thus one important tool in our anti-terrorism efforts.  We will continue to zealously seek out and prosecute individuals like Mr. Ahmed.”

Khaleel Ahmed, 37, a native of India, was convicted pursuant to a guilty plea in 2009 of providing material support to terrorists through his efforts to travel abroad in order to murder or maim U.S. military forces in Iraq or Afghanistan, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2339A. As admitted in his criminal proceedings, between 2004 and 2007, Ahmed and his cousin, Zubair Ahmed, made preparations to travel abroad, and did in fact travel to Cairo, Egypt, with the intent of engaging in acts that would result in the murder or maiming of U.S. military forces. Upon returning from Cairo, the cousins discussed, sought, and received instruction on the use of firearms, including sniper rifles, and in counter-surveillance techniques. They also collected and distributed videos of attacks on U.S. military forces overseas, manuals on military tactics, and military manuals on weaponry. In 2009, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio accepted the cousins’ guilty pleas, and in 2010 sentenced Khaleel Ahmed to eight years and four months in prison and three years of supervised release.

Although Ahmed’s crimes began while he was a permanent resident of the United States, he was not arrested and his criminal proceedings did not occur until after he naturalized in 2004. The civil denaturalization complaint alleges that Ahmed concealed and affirmatively misrepresented his criminal conduct throughout his naturalization proceedings, and that his application would have been denied had immigration authorities known about his provision of material support to terrorists. 

"The United States will never be a safe haven for those seeking to support terrorists,” said Special Agent in Charge James M. Gibbons, HSI Chicago.  “When individuals lie to obtain immigration benefits, the system is severely undermined and the security of our nation is put at risk.”

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Civil Division’s Office of Immigration Litigation, District Court Section (OIL-DCS). The case is being prosecuted by OIL-DCS’s National Security and Affirmative Litigation Unit, with support from ICE’s Chicago Office of the Chief Counsel and ICE-HSI Chicago.

The claims made in the complaint are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions today announced that, consistent with his November 2017 memorandum prohibiting the Department from making rules without following the procedures required by Congress, he is rescinding 24 guidance documents that were unnecessary, outdated, inconsistent with existing law, or otherwise improper.

“The American people deserve to have their voices heard and a government that is accountable to them. When issuing regulations, federal agencies must abide by constitutional principles and follow the rules set forth by Congress and the President. In previous administrations, however, agencies often tried to impose new rules on the American people without any public notice or comment period, simply by sending a letter or posting a guidance document on a website. That’s wrong, and it’s not good government.

“In the Trump administration, we are restoring the rule of law. That’s why in November I banned this practice at the Department and we began rescinding guidance documents that were issued improperly or that were simply inconsistent with current law.

“Today we are rescinding 24 more and continuing to put an end to unnecessary or improper rulemaking.”

In February 2017, President Donald Trump issued Executive Order 13777, which calls for agencies to establish Regulatory Reform Task Forces, chaired by a Regulatory Reform Officer, to identify existing regulations for potential repeal, replacement, or modification. The Department of Justice Task Force is chaired by Acting Associate Attorney General Jesse Panuccio.

In November 2017, the Attorney General issued a memorandum prohibiting Department of Justice (DOJ) components from using guidance documents to circumvent the rulemaking process and directed components to identify guidance documents that should be repealed, replaced, or modified.

The Task Force identified 25 guidance documents for repeal in December 2017 and has identified 24 more documents to repeal this month.  The Task Force is continuing its review of existing guidance documents to repeal, replace, or modify.

The list of 24 guidance documents that DOJ has withdrawn in 2018 is as follows:

1. March 17, 2011, OJJDP Memorandum re Status Offenders and the JJDPA. 
2. October 20, 2010 OJJDP Memorandum re Status Offenders and the JDDPA.
3. June 17, 2014, Revised Guidance on Jail Removal and Separation Core Requirements. 
4. Disaggregating MIP Data from DSO and/or Jail Removal Violations: OJJDP Guidance for States, 2011. 
5. OJJDP Policy Guidance for Nonsecure Custody of Juveniles in Adult Jails and Lockups; Notice of Final Policy. 
6. OJJDP Guidance Manual: Audit of Compliance Monitoring Systems. 
7. OJJDP Disproportionate Minority Contact Technical Assistance Manual, Fourth Edition, 2009. 
8. BJA State Criminal Alien Assistance Program Guidelines, 2016. 
9. NIJ April 6, 2016, Dear Colleague Letter regarding additional topics and research questions of high priority and particular interest to the NIJ as part of its Comprehensive School Safety Initiative. 
10. Looking for the Best Mortgage, December 14, 2010. 
11. FRB: Putting Your Home on the Loan Line is Risky Business, August 6, 2015. 
12. Federal Protections Against National Origin Discrimination, April 30, 2006. 
13. Look at the Facts, Not at the Faces:  Your Guide to Fair Employment, Approx. July 2009. 
14. Refugees and Asylees Have the Right to Work, May 2011. 
15. Language Assistance Self-Assessment and Planning Tool for Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance, on or before February 12, 2003. 
16. FAQs About the Protection of Limited English Proficiency (LEP) Individuals under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title VI Regulations, March 1, 2011. 
17. Draft Language Access Planning and Technical Assistance Tool for Courts, December 18, 2012. 
18. December 2, 2011 Dear Colleague Letter Regarding the Use of Race by Educational Institutions. 
19. 2011 Guidance on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity in Postsecondary Education dated December 2, 2011. 
20. 2011 Guidance on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity and Avoid Racial Isolation in Elementary and Secondary Schools dated December 2, 2011. 
21. September 27, 2013 Dear Colleague Letter on the Voluntary Use of Race to Achieve Diversity in Higher Education After Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher I]. 
22. September 27, 2013 Questions and Answers About Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher I]. 
23. May 6, 2014 Dear Colleague Letter on the Supreme Court Ruling in Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action. 
24. September 30, 2016 Question and Answers About Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin [Fisher II].  

Today, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that he will be appointing Bradley Weinsheimer as Acting Associate Deputy Attorney General for the U.S. Department of Justice.  Weinsheimer will replace Scott Schools, who is leaving on July 6th to take a position in the private sector after close to two decades of service in the Department of Justice.

Weinsheimer will began serving as Acting Associate Deputy Attorney General upon Schools’ departure. In this position he will have no role in overseeing the Special Counsel. 

“Scott Schools has been a fabulous lawyer for the Department of Justice for close to twenty years, rising through the ranks at the Department to become our most senior career attorney,” said Attorney General Sessions. “He has served with distinction in several positions in the Department, including as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, the U.S. Attorney for South Carolina and the Northern District of California, and as an Associate Deputy Attorney General. Scott has provided invaluable leadership and counsel in his years at the Department, and his service is an example to all. He will be greatly missed, and I wish him the best in his future endeavors.”

Weinsheimer has been at the Department of Justice for 27 years, having been appointed as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in DC in 1991, where he held that position for 20 years. At the United States Attorney’s Office, he tried dozens of cases, including homicides, drug and violent crime conspiracies, and public corruption and bank fraud cases.  He held numerous supervisory positions, including twice serving as the Chief of the Superior Court Division.

From June 2011 until March 2016, he served as the Deputy Counsel in Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR), and since March 2016 have worked in the National Security Division, where he has served as the Chief of Staff and Director of Risk Management and Senior Counsel, his current position.

Weinsheimer has received numerous awards, including two Executive Office for United States Attorneys’ Director’s awards for superior management and administration, as well as the Attorney General’s Claudia Flynn Award for Professional Responsibility. 

Since 2006, he has been on the adjunct faculty of George Washington University Law School, where he teaches trial advocacy and criminal practice.

He is a 1985 graduate of Marquette University and a 1989 graduate of the University of Virginia law school.

The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have entered into a consent decree with MFA Incorporated, headquartered in Columbia, Missouri, and its wholly owned subsidiary MFA Enterprises, Incorporated (collectively, “MFA”), to address alleged chemical accident prevention and preparedness violations under the Risk Management Program of the Clean Air Act. The alleged violations relate to the companies’ management of anhydrous ammonia at nine Missouri facilities, which have a combined inventory of more than 4.3 million pounds of the chemical.  Under the settlement agreement, MFA will assure that its accident prevention program complies with all applicable Clean Air Act requirements, will install emergency shutoff equipment at 53 facilities, and will pay a civil monetary penalty of $850,000. 

“This settlement will protect the communities surrounding MFA facilities by helping to prevent releases of harmful chemicals,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey H. Wood for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.  “By bringing MFA facilities into compliance with the Clean Air Act, this agreement will also substantially improve the maintenance and emergency systems that keep MFA workers safe.” 

“Accidental releases of anhydrous ammonia fertilizers can be extremely dangerous. When it is used and stored properly, it helps the local agriculture industry meet the needs of our communities, and be competitive in the marketplace,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Jim Gulliford. “This settlement ensures the rule of law is being followed by MFA, and that it is working responsibly to protect the communities and its workers where each of these facilities is located.”

In 2007, MFA pleaded guilty to one criminal misdemeanor violation of the Clean Air Act’s accident prevention provision, and admitted that it was negligent in failing to inspect, detect wear, and replace a valve on an ammonia storage tank where a release from that valve had hospitalized a worker. As part of the 2007 plea agreement, MFA agreed to come into compliance with applicable industry standards and safety requirements for the storage and handling of anhydrous ammonia. Beginning in 2012, EPA Region 7 conducted inspections and evaluated MFA’s compliance at facilities in Missouri and found that, despite the 2007 plea, numerous facilities did not conform to applicable industry standards. EPA also discovered several unreported ammonia releases that had injured workers. 

The Complaint alleges numerous violations of the Clean Air Act’s Risk Management Program requirements at nine MFA facilities. Among MFA’s most common alleged violations, it failed to: (1) implement procedures to maintain its equipment; (2) properly conduct hazard reviews and address any hazards found in a timely manner; (3) develop and implement written operating procedures that provide clear instructions for safely conducting activities; and (4) disclose in its Risk Management Program submissions all incidents of accidental chemical releases that injured MFA employees.   

Under the proposed settlement, MFA must create and implement corporate policies and engineering specifications for the storage and handling of anhydrous ammonia and a corporate-wide inventory maintenance system. It must also inspect and remedy any problems found within certain parts of its process equipment. Additionally, MFA must update the information it provides to EPA on accidental releases, and it must create and maintain a publicly available portion of its website listing accidents and releases that occur after the Consent Decree is lodged with the court.  Finally, the Consent Decree requires MFA to hire an independent third-party auditor to conduct Risk Management Program audits at twenty facilities to identify and correct any potential violations of its risk management program under the Clean Air Act.

Also, as a part of today’s agreement, MFA will install emergency electronic shutoff systems at no fewer than 53 of its facilities. The electronic shutoff systems must include emergency stop buttons and a remote stop transmitter, which can be worn by an employee to reduce response time to a potential release. The systems are designed to close all shutoff valves and shut down liquid and vapor pumps facility-wide. The estimated cost to implement these systems is about $400,000.

The consent decree is subject to a 30-day public comment period and approval by the federal court. 

Today, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the appointment of Uttam Dhillon as Acting Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration.  Dhillon will replace Robert Patterson, who has retired after 30 years of service.

"With one American dying of a drug overdose every nine minutes, there can be no doubt that we are facing the deadliest drug epidemic in our history," Attorney General Sessions said. "The work of the Drug Enforcement Administration is critical to fighting this crisis, and President Trump and I are committed to continuing to give it the strong leadership it deserves.  That is why I am pleased to appoint Uttam Dhillon as Acting Administrator.  Uttam is a dedicated public servant who has served with distinction in the White House, the Department of Justice, the Department of Homeland Security, Congress, and as a career federal prosecutor taking on drug traffickers at the highest levels.  I would also like to thank my good friend Robert Patterson for his exemplary service throughout his 30 years with the Drug Enforcement Administration, most recently as Acting Administrator."

Dhillon began serving in the role of Acting Administrator today.

Dhillon has had a long career battling drug traffickers and violent crime.  In 2006, Dhillon was confirmed by the Senate as the first Director of the Office of Counternarcotics Enforcement at the Department of Homeland Security.  In that role, Dhillon served as the primary policy advisor on counternarcotics issues, focused on combating the connections between illegal drug trafficking and terrorism and developed regional counternarcotics strategies for DHS.

Prior to DHS, Dhillon served as an Associate Deputy Attorney General in the Department of Justice, where he chaired the Attorney General’s Anti-Gang Coordination Committee, and led efforts to formulate and implement Department of Justice policies and programs to combat violent crime and criminal gangs.  Earlier in his career, Dhillon worked as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Central District of California for 6 ½ years.  During that period, Dhillon was appointed to the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, and worked with federal and local law enforcement agencies to direct complex investigations of violent gangs and major narcotics trafficking organizations.    

More recently, Dhillon has served as Deputy Counsel and Deputy Assistant to the President.  Dhillon also has significant experience in the Legislative Branch, holding several senior roles including Chief Oversight Counsel for the House Financial Services Committee, Chief Counsel and Deputy Staff Director for the House Select Committee on Homeland Security, and Senior Investigative Counsel for the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.   Both prior to and subsequent to his public service, Dhillon worked for several large law firms.

Dhillon received his law degree from Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley, an M.A. from the University of California, San Diego, and a B.A. from California State University, Sacramento.

The Justice Department today announced that Dustin Allen Hughes, 26, of Cutler Bay, Florida, pleaded guilty yesterday in the Southern District of Florida to one count of obstructing the free exercise of religious beliefs through the threatened use of a dangerous weapon and explosive, in connection with making a phone call in which he threatened to detonate a bomb at a mosque in Pembroke Pines, Florida.

During the plea hearing, Hughes admitted that on May 5, he called an emergency contact for the Jamaat Ul Muttaqeen Mosque of Pembroke Pines, Florida, and left a hate-filled and profanity-laden voicemail message denigrating Islam and threatening to blow up the mosque. Hughes further admitted that in his message he specifically stated that he had a detonator, that he was “going to blow your . . . temple up,” and that “you guys are all going to be up in flames after I’m done with you.”  

Following the threatening voice message, law enforcement was contacted and immediately responded, but no bomb was uncovered after an extensive exterior and interior sweep of the mosque was conducted.

Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 6 before U.S. District Judge Federico A. Moreno in Miami. Hughes faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

“The Justice Department will not tolerate threats of hate violence, which threaten an entire community’s sense of safety and security,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously prosecute hate crimes so that all people, no matter how they worship, can live their lives freely and without fear.”

“Our office is committed to protecting the right to freely exercise one’s religious beliefs,” said United States Attorney Benjamin Greenberg for the Southern District of Florida.  “Obstructing this right, by force or threat of force, constitutes a hate crime that we will continue to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law.” 

“Freedom of religion is a fundamental right for every American,” said Robert F. Lasky, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Miami Field Office.  “The FBI and its partners will work tirelessly to ensure anyone who threatens those rights is held accountable.”

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Miami Area Corruption Task Force and the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF).  The Pembroke Pines Police Department, Miami-Dade Police Department and the City of Miami Police Department also provided assistance with this matter.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Davis of the Southern District of Florida and Trial Attorney Samantha Trepel of the Civil Rights Division.

An indictment was unsealed today in the U.S. District Court of Maryland charging Shingaizdo Nhekairo, 49, of Arnold, Maryland, with one count of alien harboring for financial gain and one count of unlawful conduct with respect to immigration documents. The indictment was announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General John Gore of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur.

According to the indictment, between 2006 and 2014, the defendant harbored the victim, a national of Zimbabwe. The indictment further alleges that the defendant concealed the victim’s immigration status for purposes of financial gain and confiscated the victim’s passport to maintain her labor and services.

An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. If convicted of alien harboring, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. The crime of unlawful conduct with respect to immigration documents carries a maximum sentence of one year in prison and requires mandatory restitution.

The case is being investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations Baltimore Division, with assistance from the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ayn Ducao of the District of Maryland and Trial Attorneys Vasantha Rao and Emily Savner of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.