District Not Recorded

A federal court in the Western District of Michigan has permanently enjoined a married couple from preparing returns for others and from owning, operating, or franchising any tax return preparation business in the future.

The civil complaint filed in the case alleged that Rosa Linda Meyer, aka Rosa Linda Hernandez, and doing business as Su Casa Income Tax Service, prepared federal income tax returns containing false and fraudulent claims. It further alleges that Rosa Linda Meyer’s spouse Stanley Meyer, doing business as I-Tax Services, prepared fraudulent returns in concert with Rosa Linda Meyer after she was investigated by the IRS. In addition, the complaint alleges that Rosa Linda Meyer also prepared and filed returns using Stanley Meyer’s name. According to the complaint, the false and fraudulent claims made in returns prepared by either or both of the Meyers included: (1) false or inflated dependency exemptions and related false or inflated child tax credits; (2) false head of household filing status resulting in a lower tax due (and higher refund); and (3) fictitious or inflated earned income, in order to allow the taxpayer to falsely claim the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or to claim an inflated EITC.

According to the court’s order, defendants joined in the motion for an injunction, which permits the United States to conduct full post-judgment discovery to monitor compliance. The terms of the order require that the Meyers and their businesses send notice of the injunction to each person for whom they prepared federal tax returns or claims for refund “beginning in 2016 and continuing through this litigation.”

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement

Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’ Dirty Dozen Tax Scams and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. (More information can also be found here.) The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax preparer, has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers, and offers information on how to avoid “ghost” tax preparers, whose refusal to sign a return should be a red flag to taxpayers. 

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

WASHINGTON - En el día de la fecha, el Departamento de Justicia anunció que resolvió una revisión de los derechos civiles del Sistema Judicial Unificado de Dakota del Sur (Unified Judicial System, UJS) que les facilitará el acceso a los tribunales estatales a aquellas personas con dominio limitado del inglés (LEP, por sus siglas en inglés).

La revisión del Departamento de Justicia comenzó después de recibir un reclamo de East River Legal Services en el que se alegaba que los tribunales del UJS discriminaban a las personas con dominio limitado del inglés debido a su origen nacional, lo que constituía una violación del Título VI de la Ley de Derechos Civiles [Civil Rights Act] de 1964. En virtud del Título VI, se prohíbe a los receptores de ayuda económica del Gobierno federal discriminar por motivos de raza, color u origen nacional.  La revisión del departamento puso de manifiesto la existencia de barreras lingüísticas y costos judiciales más elevados en el UJS que dificultaban la participación de las personas con un dominio limitado del inglés en los casos y procedimientos civiles estatales.

“Los tribunales estatales son fundamentales para la integridad de nuestro sistema de justicia y es importante que se elimine cualquier barrera que les impida a las personas acceder a estas instituciones”, sostuvo la procuradora general adjunta Kristen Clarke, de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. “Seguiremos trabajando con los tribunales estatales para eliminar las barreras lingüísticas que impiden el acceso a la justicia y violan la legislación federal de derechos civiles. Le agradecemos al Sistema Judicial Unificado de Dakota del Sur por trabajar en cooperación con el Departamento de Justicia para resolver este asunto y por tomar medidas rápidas para garantizar que todas las personas que ingresen a los tribunales puedan entender y participar en los casos, independientemente de su nivel de inglés”.

En respuesta a la revisión del departamento, el UJS presentó un proyecto de ley en la legislatura estatal para que las personas con dominio limitado del inglés tengan un mayor acceso a intérpretes y traductores judiciales en todos los casos civiles. Esta ley entró en vigor el 1 de julio. Para aplicar la nueva ley, el UJS consiguió fondos adicionales para su presupuesto a fin de proporcionar servicios de interpretación sin costo a las partes y testigos con dominio limitado del inglés. Asimismo, el UJS actualizó los planes de acceso al idioma para todos los circuitos judiciales del estado, nombró un coordinador y creó un proceso de reclamo de acceso al idioma. El coordinador y los procesos de reclamo ayudarán a garantizar que las personas puedan informar su situación al UJS. El UJS también ha acordado seguir trabajando con el departamento para mejorar la equidad y el acceso no discriminatorio a los tribunales para las personas con dominio limitado del inglés.

Este caso fue investigado de forma conjunta por los abogados de la División de Derechos Civiles y de la Oficina del Procurador de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito de Dakota del Sur. El cumplimiento de las disposiciones del Título VI es una de las principales prioridades de la División de Derechos Civiles. Para obtener más información sobre la División de Derechos Civiles, visite el sitio web www.justice.gov/crt; además, puede encontrar información sobre el dominio limitado del inglés y sobre las disposiciones del Título VI en www.lep.gov. Los ciudadanos pueden denunciar posibles violaciones de los derechos civiles en https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/ o en la Oficina del Procurador de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito de Dakota del Sur mediante el formulario de reclamo que está disponible en https://www.justice.gov/usao- sd/civil-rights.

WASHINGTON - En el día de la fecha, el Departamento de Justicia anunció que resolvió una revisión de los derechos civiles del Sistema Judicial Unificado de Dakota del Sur (Unified Judicial System, UJS) que les facilitará el acceso a los tribunales estatales a aquellas personas con dominio limitado del inglés (LEP, por sus siglas en inglés).

La revisión del Departamento de Justicia comenzó después de recibir un reclamo de East River Legal Services en el que se alegaba que los tribunales del UJS discriminaban a las personas con dominio limitado del inglés debido a su origen nacional, lo que constituía una violación del Título VI de la Ley de Derechos Civiles [Civil Rights Act] de 1964. En virtud del Título VI, se prohíbe a los receptores de ayuda económica del Gobierno federal discriminar por motivos de raza, color u origen nacional.  La revisión del departamento puso de manifiesto la existencia de barreras lingüísticas y costos judiciales más elevados en el UJS que dificultaban la participación de las personas con un dominio limitado del inglés en los casos y procedimientos civiles estatales.

“Los tribunales estatales son fundamentales para la integridad de nuestro sistema de justicia y es importante que se elimine cualquier barrera que les impida a las personas acceder a estas instituciones”, sostuvo la procuradora general adjunta Kristen Clarke, de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. “Seguiremos trabajando con los tribunales estatales para eliminar las barreras lingüísticas que impiden el acceso a la justicia y violan la legislación federal de derechos civiles. Le agradecemos al Sistema Judicial Unificado de Dakota del Sur por trabajar en cooperación con el Departamento de Justicia para resolver este asunto y por tomar medidas rápidas para garantizar que todas las personas que ingresen a los tribunales puedan entender y participar en los casos, independientemente de su nivel de inglés”.

En respuesta a la revisión del departamento, el UJS presentó un proyecto de ley en la legislatura estatal para que las personas con dominio limitado del inglés tengan un mayor acceso a intérpretes y traductores judiciales en todos los casos civiles. Esta ley entró en vigor el 1 de julio. Para aplicar la nueva ley, el UJS consiguió fondos adicionales para su presupuesto a fin de proporcionar servicios de interpretación sin costo a las partes y testigos con dominio limitado del inglés. Asimismo, el UJS actualizó los planes de acceso al idioma para todos los circuitos judiciales del estado, nombró un coordinador y creó un proceso de reclamo de acceso al idioma. El coordinador y los procesos de reclamo ayudarán a garantizar que las personas puedan informar su situación al UJS. El UJS también ha acordado seguir trabajando con el departamento para mejorar la equidad y el acceso no discriminatorio a los tribunales para las personas con dominio limitado del inglés.

Este caso fue investigado de forma conjunta por los abogados de la División de Derechos Civiles y de la Oficina del Procurador de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito de Dakota del Sur. El cumplimiento de las disposiciones del Título VI es una de las principales prioridades de la División de Derechos Civiles. Para obtener más información sobre la División de Derechos Civiles, visite el sitio web www.justice.gov/crt; además, puede encontrar información sobre el dominio limitado del inglés y sobre las disposiciones del Título VI en www.lep.gov. Los ciudadanos pueden denunciar posibles violaciones de los derechos civiles en https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/ o en la Oficina del Procurador de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito de Dakota del Sur mediante el formulario de reclamo que está disponible en https://www.justice.gov/usao- sd/civil-rights.

On Sept. 30, 2021, three settlement agreements were approved by the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. Under the agreements, Montrose Chemical Corporation of California, Bayer CropScience Inc., TFCF America Inc., and Stauffer Management Company LLC have agreed to pay $77.6 million for cleanup of contaminated groundwater at the Montrose Chemical Corp. Superfund and the Del Amo Superfund Sites in Los Angeles County, California. The companies will also investigate potential contamination of the historic stormwater pathway leading from the Montrose Superfund Site, south of Torrance Boulevard. Another company, JCI Jones Chemicals Inc. will participate in the groundwater cleanup.

The settlements not only provide for cleanup and investigation, but also collectively resolve active litigation in a case that has been pending for over 30 years under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, commonly referred to as Superfund). From 1947 to 1982, Montrose operated the U.S.’s largest manufacturing plant for the pesticide DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane).

“These settlements will enhance groundwater quality in Los Angeles County by requiring the responsible polluters to clean up two major portions of the Montrose Superfund Site and investigate the historic stormwater pathway,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “These settlements demonstrate the Justice Department’s and EPA’s continuing efforts, together with our state partners, to ensure that polluters, not the American public, pay for the investigation and cleanup of Superfund sites.”

“EPA continues its commitment to protecting community health and drinking water sources by cleaning up groundwater impacted by the Montrose and Del Amo Superfund Sites,” said Director Enrique Manzanilla of EPA’s Pacific Southwest Superfund and Emergency Management. “These settlements ensure the long-term operation of the Montrose Superfund Site’s cleanup so that it is not an ongoing source of contamination.”

“For years, people in this area have been impacted by contamination from these former pesticide- and rubber-manufacturing sites, and these settlements bring them one step closer to equity,” said Director Meredith Williams of the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). “We stand with the people who live, work, and play near this contamination, and we will continue our efforts to make the polluters pay for their actions.”

The settlements require the companies to pay for and implement cleanup remedies and perform an investigation with federal and state oversight. The companies will also reimburse EPA more than $8 million and California DTSC more than $450,000 for costs already incurred.

Each settlement addresses specific activity to address cleanup of the sites:

• The first settlement requires pumping and treating the groundwater to federal and state cleanup standards and then reinjecting the treated water back into the ground.
• The second settlement will bring about treatment of the soil to address historical releases that are an ongoing source of groundwater contamination. Air monitoring will be performed to ensure there are no impacts to the surrounding community.
• The third settlement requires investigation of potential contaminant releases in the historic stormwater pathway leading from the Montrose Superfund Site, south of Torrance Boulevard. This settlement will be used to determine if there is contamination in the pathway that may require cleanup.

The settlements are memorialized in three consent decrees.

For information on these Superfund sites, visit the Del Amo Los Angeles, CA Superfund site profile web page at https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0901293 and the Montrose Chemical Corp. Torrance, CA Superfund site profile web page at https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/cursites/csitinfo.cfm?id=0901293.

Learn more about EPA’s Pacific Southwest Region.

BANGOR, Maine: A Seal Cove man pleaded guilty today in federal court to three counts of producing child pornography, one count of transporting child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced.

According to court records, on July 6, 2020, Keegan T. Richardson, 28, entered a private chat group on the internet and began communicating with an FBI undercover agent. This chat group was known to the agent as a place where people met, discussed and traded original images of underage children and links containing child pornography. Richardson confirmed that he had access to a female minor and shared multiple sexually explicit images of the minor with the agent.  Shortly afterwards, a search warrant was obtained for Richardson’s residence and phone, and he was arrested. Investigators later learned that he had access to two other minors. On his phone, a forensic examiner found multiple sexually explicit images of all three minors. Richardson had taken the images with his phone. The forensic examiner also found multiple additional images of sexually explicit conduct involving different minors on the phone.

Richardson faces a minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison for each production count, a minimum of five years and a maximum of 20 years in prison for the transportation count, and up to 20 years in prison for the possession count. He also faces a fine of up to $250,000 for each count, and a term of supervised release of between five years and life. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI, the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office, the Maine State Police and the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency investigated the case.

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

Citing an increase in harassment, intimidation and threats of violence against school board members, teachers and workers in our nation’s public schools, today Attorney General Merrick B. Garland directed the FBI and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices to meet in the next 30 days with federal, state, Tribal, territorial and local law enforcement leaders to discuss strategies for addressing this disturbing trend. These sessions will open dedicated lines of communication for threat reporting, assessment and response by law enforcement.   

“Threats against public servants are not only illegal, they run counter to our nation’s core values,” wrote Attorney General Garland. “Those who dedicate their time and energy to ensuring that our children receive a proper education in a safe environment deserve to be able to do their work without fear for their safety.”

According to the Attorney General’s memorandum, the Justice Department will launch a series of additional efforts in the coming days designed to address the rise in criminal conduct directed toward school personnel. Those efforts are expected to include the creation of a task force, consisting of representatives from the department’s Criminal Division, National Security Division, Civil Rights Division, the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, the FBI, the Community Relations Service and the Office of Justice Programs, to determine how federal enforcement tools can be used to prosecute these crimes, and ways to assist state, Tribal, territorial and local law enforcement where threats of violence may not constitute federal crimes.

The Justice Department will also create specialized training and guidance for local school boards and school administrators. This training will help school board members and other potential victims understand the type of behavior that constitutes threats, how to report threatening conduct to the appropriate law enforcement agencies, and how to capture and preserve evidence of threatening conduct to aid in the investigation and prosecution of these crimes.

Threats of violence against school board members, officials, and workers in our nation’s public schools can be reported by the public to the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center (NTOC) via its national tip line (1-800-CALL-FBI) and online through the FBI website (http://fbi.gov/tips). To ensure that threats are communicated to the appropriate authorities, NTOC will direct credible threats to FBI field offices, for coordination with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and law enforcement partners as appropriate. Reporting threats of violence through NTOC will help the federal government identify increased threats in specific jurisdictions as well as coordinated widespread efforts to intimidate educators and education workers.

Jeffersonville, Indiana-based American Commercial Barge Line LLC (American Commercial) has agreed to acquire and preserve 649 acres of woodland wildlife habitat near New Orleans, Louisiana, and pay over $2 million in damages, in addition to $1.32 million previously paid for damage assessment and restoration planning costs, under the Oil Pollution Act (OPA) and the Louisiana Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act (OSPRA), to resolve federal and State claims for injuries to natural resources resulting from an oil spill from one of its barges.

The United States and Louisiana concurrently filed a civil complaint with a proposed consent decree. The complaint seeks damages and costs under OPA and OSPRA for injuries to natural resources resulting from American Commercial’s July 2008 discharge of approximately 6,734 barrels (282,828 gallons) of No. 6 fuel oil into the Mississippi River upriver of New Orleans. The complaint alleges that the spill resulted from a collision that occurred when the American Commercial tug Mel Oliver, which was pushing a barge upriver, veered directly in front of the MV Tintomara, an ocean-going tanker ship sailing downriver. The oil spill spread more than 100 miles downriver and covered over 5,000 acres of shoreline habitat. The oil spill caused significant impact and injuries to aquatic habitats within the Mississippi River and along its shoreline, as well as to birds and other wildlife. The oil spill forced the closure of the river from River Mile Marker 98 (just upriver from New Orleans) to the Southwest Pass Sea Buoy, from July 23, 2008 until July 29, 2008. American Commercial, the Coast Guard, and the State were involved in extensive response and cleanup efforts, and American Commercial has cooperated with the federal and State trustees in the assessment of injuries to natural resources.  

“This settlement secures full compensation for the damaged resources, including the permanent preservation of 649 acres of critical wildlife habitat along the Mississippi River just a few miles from downtown New Orleans,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The restoration projects funded by this settlement will restore wildlife and wetlands, and enhance recreational opportunities for Louisiana’s residents and visitors.”  

“Safeguarding the environment is one of the highest priorities for the Department of Justice,” said U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “Ultimately, this case demonstrates the DOJ’s firm commitment, along with our federal and state partners, to utilize the full panoply of legal remedies available to protect and remediate vital water sources and the diverse ecosystems found in southeastern Louisiana.”

“Local communities and economies in Louisiana depend on the Mississippi River and the vibrant ecosystems it supports,” said Director Nicole LeBoeuf of NOAA's National Ocean Service. “We are pleased to join with industry and our co-trustees to restore vital habitats, wildlife, and outdoor recreational areas injured by the oil spill, and look forward to working with the public to implement restoration projects.”

“The wildlife resources and outdoor recreation opportunities of the lower Mississippi are critical to Louisiana’s rich natural heritage,” said Regional Director Leopoldo Miranda-Castro of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s South Atlantic-Gulf & Mississippi-Basin Regional Office. This settlement will allow for the restoration of lost resources and services and will facilitate locally-driven conservation and management that ensures equitable access to the connected local communities.”

Under the proposed consent decree, American Commercial will acquire (at an estimated purchase price of $3.25 million) and preserve 649 acres of woodland habitat, consisting of hardwood forested wetland, swamp, relic wetlands, and open waters (i.e., canals), near the Mississippi River in upper Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana (Woodlands Parcel). The Woodlands Conservancy, a local nonprofit that currently manages the property for recreational and educational use, will hold title to the property and a conservation servitude will forever limit the use of the Woodlands Parcel to passive recreation, thereby protecting and preserving the ecological benefits of the property.

American Commercial will also pay $2.07 million to compensate for natural resource damages from the spill. The federal and State trustees will jointly use the cash payment to perform projects to restore or ameliorate the impacts to aquatic life, birds, river batture, wetlands, marshes, and recreational uses along the Mississippi River. The projects, which are described in the final Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment, Mississippi River Oil Spill, Gretna – New Orleans, Louisiana, July 23, 2008, include habitat restoration activities at the Woodlands Parcel and marsh creation in the Pass-a-Loutre State Wildlife Management Area. American Commercial has paid $1.32 million to reimburse the federal and State trustees for their past damage assessment and restoration planning costs, as required under OPA and OSPRA.

Today’s action was filed by the Department of Justice and the Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator’s Office, Department of Public Safety & Corrections (LOSCO) on behalf of the federal and State trustees for natural resources. The designated federal trustees for the natural resources impacted by American Commercial’s oil spill are the U.S. Department of Commerce through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Department of the Interior through the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The designated state trustees are LOSCO, Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority. The federal and State trustees worked together to perform the injury assessment and to develop and adopt the restoration plan.

In an earlier related OPA enforcement action filed in 2011, the Department of Justice secured a settlement with American Commercial for $20,000,000 to reimburse the United States for OPA removal costs and damages.

The proposed consent decree is subject to a 30-day public comment period and court review and approval. A copy of the consent decree is available on the Department of Justice website at www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html.

The United States and Louisiana concurrently filed a civil complaint with a proposed consent decree. The complaint seeks damages and costs under OPA and OSPRA for injuries to natural resources resulting from American Commercial’s July 2008 discharge of approximately 6,734 barrels (282,828 gallons) of No. 6 fuel oil into the Mississippi River upriver of New Orleans. The complaint alleges that the spill resulted from a collision that occurred when the American Commercial tug Mel Oliver, which was pushing a barge upriver, veered directly in front of the MV Tintomara, an ocean-going tanker ship sailing downriver. The oil spill spread more than 100 miles downriver and covered over 5,000 acres of shoreline habitat. The oil spill caused significant impact and injuries to aquatic habitats within the Mississippi River and along its shoreline, as well as to birds and other wildlife. The oil spill forced the closure of the river from River Mile Marker 98 (just upriver from New Orleans) to the Southwest Pass Sea Buoy, from July 23, 2008 until July 29, 2008. American Commercial, the Coast Guard, and the State were involved in extensive response and cleanup efforts, and American Commercial has cooperated with the federal and State trustees in the assessment of injuries to natural resources.  

“This settlement secures full compensation for the damaged resources, including the permanent preservation of 649 acres of critical wildlife habitat along the Mississippi River just a few miles from downtown New Orleans,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The restoration projects funded by this settlement will restore wildlife and wetlands, and enhance recreational opportunities for Louisiana’s residents and visitors.”  

“Safeguarding the environment is one of the highest priorities for the Department of Justice,” said U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “Ultimately, this case demonstrates the DOJ’s firm commitment, along with our federal and state partners, to utilize the full panoply of legal remedies available to protect and remediate vital water sources and the diverse ecosystems found in southeastern Louisiana.”

“Local communities and economies in Louisiana depend on the Mississippi River and the vibrant ecosystems it supports,” said Director Nicole LeBoeuf of NOAA's National Ocean Service. “We are pleased to join with industry and our co-trustees to restore vital habitats, wildlife, and outdoor recreational areas injured by the oil spill, and look forward to working with the public to implement restoration projects.”

“The wildlife resources and outdoor recreation opportunities of the lower Mississippi are critical to Louisiana’s rich natural heritage,” said Regional Director Leopoldo Miranda-Castro of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s South Atlantic-Gulf & Mississippi-Basin Regional Office. This settlement will allow for the restoration of lost resources and services and will facilitate locally-driven conservation and management that ensures equitable access to the connected local communities.”

Under the proposed consent decree, American Commercial will acquire (at an estimated purchase price of $3.25 million) and preserve 649 acres of woodland habitat, consisting of hardwood forested wetland, swamp, relic wetlands, and open waters (i.e., canals), near the Mississippi River in upper Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana (Woodlands Parcel). The Woodlands Conservancy, a local nonprofit that currently manages the property for recreational and educational use, will hold title to the property and a conservation servitude will forever limit the use of the Woodlands Parcel to passive recreation, thereby protecting and preserving the ecological benefits of the property.

American Commercial will also pay $2.07 million to compensate for natural resource damages from the spill. The federal and State trustees will jointly use the cash payment to perform projects to restore or ameliorate the impacts to aquatic life, birds, river batture, wetlands, marshes, and recreational uses along the Mississippi River. The projects, which are described in the final Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment, Mississippi River Oil Spill, Gretna – New Orleans, Louisiana, July 23, 2008, include habitat restoration activities at the Woodlands Parcel and marsh creation in the Pass-a-Loutre State Wildlife Management Area. American Commercial has paid $1.32 million to reimburse the federal and State trustees for their past damage assessment and restoration planning costs, as required under OPA and OSPRA.

Today’s action was filed by the Department of Justice and the Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator’s Office, Department of Public Safety & Corrections (LOSCO) on behalf of the federal and State trustees for natural resources. The designated federal trustees for the natural resources impacted by American Commercial’s oil spill are the U.S. Department of Commerce through the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Department of the Interior through the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The designated state trustees are LOSCO, Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and the Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority. The federal and State trustees worked together to perform the injury assessment and to develop and adopt the restoration plan.

In an earlier related OPA enforcement action filed in 2011, the Department of Justice secured a settlement with American Commercial for $20,000,000 to reimburse the United States for OPA removal costs and damages.

The proposed consent decree is subject to a 30-day public comment period and court review and approval. A copy of the consent decree is available on the Department of Justice website at www.justice.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland today issued the following statement:

“This past week has been a reminder for all of us at the Department of Justice of the risks our deputies, agents and local law enforcement partners confront each day.

“I’m deeply saddened by the shooting this morning in Tucson, Arizona, that killed a DEA special agent and injured another DEA agent and a task force officer from the Tucson Police Department. 

“We also learned of the tragic passing of Deputy U.S. Marshal and Senior Inspector Jared Keyworth, who, on Friday, succumbed to injuries sustained in a vehicle accident while assisting with a law enforcement operation late last month. 

“We are grateful for the courage and selfless sacrifice of these heroes, and I join the entire Justice Department in conveying our support and deepest sympathies to their families.”

ST. THOMAS, USVI – U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced today that the U.S. Virgin Islands Law Enforcement Planning Commission has received a $125,520 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice in support of residential substance abuse treatment for state/territorial prisoners.

The award from the Bureau of Justice Assistance supports the vital work of the U.S. Virgin Islands Law Enforcement Planning Commission’s efforts to increase services to state/territorial prisoners.

“The Law Enforcement Planning Commission provides substance abuse offenders essential treatment programs during and after incarceration in the U.S. Virgin Islands,” Shappert said. “These funds support direct services to assist offenders in their recovery from substance abuse.”

The Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) for State Prisoners Program assists states, territories, and local governments to develop and implement substance abuse treatment programs in state, territory, and local correctional and detention facilities and to create and maintain community-based aftercare services for offenders. The goal of the RSAT Program is to break the cycle of drugs and violence by reducing the demand for, use, and trafficking of illegal drugs. RSAT enhances the capability of states, territories, and units of local government to provide residential substance abuse treatment for incarcerated inmates; prepares offenders for their reintegration into the communities from which they came by incorporating reentry planning activities into treatment programs; and assists offenders and their communities through the reentry process through the delivery of community-based treatment and other broad-based aftercare services. The grantee will use the RSAT funds to implement up to three types of programs: residential, jail-based, and aftercare.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) offers funding through a variety of different programs. Learn about funding webinars, apply to become a peer reviewer, find information about previously available solicitation, and see award details. Learn more at www.bja.ojp.gov/funding.

St. Croix, USVI – U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced that Tarik Babrow, age 24, of St. Thomas, appeared before District Court Judge Wilma A. Lewis and was sentenced today on the charge of Conspiracy to Possess Marijuana with Intent to Distribute.

Babrow was sentenced to a term of 9 months in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, received a $1,000 fine, and $100 special assessment. Additionally, $2,871 was ordered forfeited.

According to court documents, on February 11, 2021, Babrow and three other co-conspirators flew into the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport on St. Croix on American Airlines flight number 2003 from Charlotte, North Carolina. Upon their arrival, several pieces of luggage were selected for physical inspection after anomalies were observed while the luggage was examined by an X-ray machine. A subsequent search revealed several clear, vacuum sealed bundles containing a green, leafy substance, which later field-tested positive for marijuana. In total, approximately 6.33 kilograms of suspected marijuana was seized from Babrow and his co-conspirators. In addition, $2,871 was seized from him as drug trafficking proceeds.

Customs and Border Protection and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel H. Huston prosecuted the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

Yesterday U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta convened a virtual listening session with Members of the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence to discuss the unmet needs of survivors and the ways in which the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) could be improved and strengthened to help to meet those needs. The Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General and Associate Attorney General were joined by leadership of the Justice Department’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW).

At the outset of the meeting, Attorney General Garland reaffirmed that combating gender-based violence has long been and remains today a priority for the Justice Department. The Attorney General discussed the department’s FY 2022 Budget request, which includes an historic investment of $1 billion to support the work of the OVW. He noted that he was serving as Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General in 1995 when the Justice Department first established a dedicated office to address domestic violence and sexual assault.

The Deputy Attorney General also shared her own experience working to end gender-based violence, namely as a staff member on the Senate Judiciary Committee in the early 1990’s, when the Violence Against Women Act was first passed. Among the Deputy Attorney General’s responsibilities was gathering personal stories from individual survivors to illustrate the dire need for stronger legal protections. 

Members of the National Task Force to End Sexual and Domestic Violence spoke about the importance of VAWA and the work of OVW over the past quarter century, including funding many of our nation’s first comprehensive rape crisis centers; recognizing tribal jurisdiction over non-Indian perpetrators of domestic violence; dedicating resources to enhance culturally-specific services and reach underserved communities, and reducing homicides through federal firearms prohibitions. The advocates emphasized the critical need for reauthorizing VAWA.

Attorney General Garland and Deputy Attorney General Monaco praised the national advocacy organizations for their efforts on behalf of survivors of sexual and domestic violence and thanked them for sharing their expertise and insights from the field in responding to these crimes. And the Deputy Attorney General closed the meeting by emphasizing the department’s commitment to working tirelessly for the swift reauthorization of VAWA this year, about which she will testify this Tuesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The Department of Justice announced today that it will require General Shale Brick Inc. (General Shale) and Meridian Brick LLC (Meridian), two of the largest suppliers of residential brick in the United States, to divest several assets used in the manufacture and sale of residential brick to preserve competition for these products in the southern and midwestern United States.

The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block the proposed transaction. At the same time, the department filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the competitive harm alleged in the lawsuit. Under the terms of the proposed settlement, the parties must divest three manufacturing facilities, 14 distribution yards and showrooms, and six mines for extracting input materials used in the manufacture of residential brick to RemSom LLC (RemSom) or an alternative acquirer approved by the United States.

“Residential brick is an essential building block in American home construction,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “As originally proposed, the transaction would have led to higher priced and lower quality residential brick, making it more expensive for millions of Americans to build and purchase homes. The settlement preserves competition for the manufacture and sale of residential brick to the benefit of American homebuilders and homebuyers.”

According to the complaint, General Shale and Meridian are two of the top suppliers of residential brick in eight separate local markets in six states (Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio). Without the required divestiture, the proposed transaction would have eliminated the substantial competition that currently exists between General Shale and Meridian in those markets.

General Shale is headquartered in Johnson City, Tennessee, and is a North American subsidiary of Wienerberger AG. General Shale is a leading U.S. producer of construction materials, such as brick, stone and concrete block products. Wienerberger AG’s North American business generated approximately $370 million in revenues in 2020, 78% of which came from brick sales.

Meridian was formed as a joint venture in 2016 by its parent companies Boral Limited and LSF9 Stardust Super Holdings L.P. Meridian, headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia, is the largest residential brick manufacturer in the United States. Meridian generated over $400 million in revenues in the fiscal year 2020, which was primarily derived from brick sales.

RemSom is a private investment firm that became the majority shareholder of US Brick LLC (US Brick), formerly known as Carolina Brick, in 2020. US Brick is a commercial and residential brick manufacturer that sells brick in 30 different states. US Brick is headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina.

As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed settlement, along with a competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register. Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement during a 60-day comment period to Jay Owen, Acting Chief, Defense, Industrials, and Aerospace Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street NW, Suite 8700, Washington, D.C. 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia may enter the final judgment upon finding it is in the public interest.

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

A Nevada man was sentenced Thursday to 151 months in prison after pleading guilty in connection with his role in a transnational fraud and money laundering conspiracy that targeted over 3,300 members of the U.S. military community resulting in $1.5 million in losses.

Fredrick Brown, 40, of Las Vegas, was sentenced for one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering following Brown’s guilty plea on Oct. 29, 2019. According to court documents, Brown conspired with four other individuals to steal money belonging to military members (as well as military dependents and civilians employed by the U.S. Department of Defense). Brown, a former civilian medical records technician and administrator with the U.S. Army at the 65th Medical Brigade, Yongsan Garrison, South Korea, admitted that between July 2014 and September 2015, he stole the personal identifying information (PII) of thousands of military members, including names, Social Security numbers, military ID numbers, dates of birth and contact information. Brown also admitted to capturing the PII by taking digital photographs of his computer screen while he was logged into a military electronic health records database and, subsequently, providing the stolen data to Philippines-based co-defendant Robert Wayne Boling Jr. Boling and others, who used the information to access DOD and Veterans Affairs benefits sites and steal millions of dollars.

“The Department of Justice has long been committed to protecting America’s servicemembers and veterans from fraud and abuse,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Rather than honoring those servicemembers and veterans who sacrifice for them, the defendant and his co-conspirators targeted and stole from these brave men and women in a years-long fraud scheme. Such conduct is an affront to the United States and will not be tolerated. Thursday’s announcement shows that the department is making good on its commitment to protect military members and demonstrates that it will bring to justice those who would seek to harm such individuals.”

“The defendant brazenly preyed on and victimized U.S. servicemembers and veterans, many of whom were disabled and elderly,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff for the Western District of Texas. “As part of our mission, we strive to protect these honorable men and women from fraud and abuse. If fraudsters target our servicemembers and veterans, we will seek to identify them and hold them accountable. This office will continue to zealously investigate and prosecute perpetrators of these schemes.”

“The theft of personally identifiable information can significantly harm our military service members, veterans and their families,” said Special Agent in Charge Kenneth A. DeChellis of the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), Cyber Field Office. “This sentencing resulted from the coordinated actions of the DCIS, Cyber Field Office, and our partner agencies, which included the full support of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, and the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Benefits Protection and Remediation Division. This collaboration demonstrated this U.S. Government’s commitment to swift action against those who attempt to enrich themselves at the expense of our current and prior military personnel.”

Brown’s actions resulted in an established financial loss to victims of more than $1.5 million, with the scheme targeting more than 3,300 military-affiliated individuals. Victims included at least eight general officers, as well as numerous disabled veterans, who were targeted because of their receipt of greater service-related benefits. 

In addition to a prison term, Chief Judge Orlando L. Garcia of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas ordered Brown to pay $2,331,639.85 in restitution and be placed on supervised release for a period of three years after completing his prison term.

In July 2020, Chief Judge Garcia sentenced co-defendant Trorice Crawford, 34, of San Diego, to 46 months in federal prison. In addition to the prison term, Crawford was ordered to pay $103,700 in restitution and, after completing his prison term, to be placed on supervised release for a period of three years. 

Trial Attorneys Ehren Reynolds and Yolanda McCray Jones of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Blackwell of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas prosecuted the case.

The matter was investigated by agents of the DOD Office of Inspector General DCIS, along with substantial investigative support from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command and the Veterans Benefits Administration’s Benefits Protection and Remediation Division. The U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Philippine law enforcement, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the District of Nevada, the Southern District of California and the Eastern District of Virginia also provided assistance. Resources from the Department of Justice’s Servicemembers and Veterans Initiative and the Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force aided in the matter’s investigation and prosecution.

Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts can be found at www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdtx. Information about the Department of Justice’s Elder Fraud Initiative is available at www.justice.gov/elderjustice; information on the Servicemembers and Veterans Initiative is at https://www.justice.gov/servicemembers.

As part of the Justice Department’s continuing efforts against prison corruption, a federal grand jury in the District of Kansas returned two indictments on Sept. 22 charging two former correctional officers with smuggling drugs and other contraband into Leavenworth Detention Center.

According to court documents, Jacqueline Sifuentes, 25, of Laredo, Texas, previously worked as a correctional officer at Leavenworth Detention Center, a privately run, maximum-security federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas. The indictment alleges that Sifuentes used her position as a public official to smuggle contraband, including methamphetamine, marijuana, and tobacco, into the prison in exchange for bribe payments from federal inmates.

Sifuentes, who was arrested Tuesday, is charged with conspiring to commit bribery and provide contraband, bribery, and providing contraband to an inmate. She made her initial appearance yesterday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Diana Song Quiroga of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. If convicted of all counts, she faces up to 40 years in prison.

According to court documents, Cheyonte Harris, 29, of Raytown, Missouri, also previously worked as a correctional officer at Leavenworth Detention Center. The indictment alleges that Harris used her position as a public official to smuggle contraband into prison in exchange for bribe payments. The indictment further alleges that she made material misrepresentations to the FBI when she was interviewed in April 2021.

Harris, who was arrested on Monday, is charged with conspiring to commit bribery and provide contraband and making false statements to federal agents. She made her initial appearance on Sept. 27 before U.S. Magistrate Judge James P. O’Hara of the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas. If convicted of all counts, she faces up to 10 years in prison.

A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Charles A. Dayoub of the FBI’s Kansas City Field Office made the announcement. 

The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the FBI. Trial Attorneys Rebecca M. Schuman and Dahoud A. Askar of the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section are prosecuting these cases.

The cases are part of the Justice Department’s ongoing efforts to combat the dangerous and corrosive effects of prison corruption. In addition to the above matters, the Public Integrity Section and the FBI recently obtained convictions against three former North Carolina prison officials who smuggled contraband, including illegal narcotics, into a state facility in exchange for bribe payments. See United States v. Ollie Rose, III, Case No. 4:20-CR-96 (E.D.N.C.); United States v. Kenneth Farr, Case No. 4:21-CR-9 (E.D.N.C.); and United States v. Jeremy Chambers, Case No. 4:21-CR-38 (E.D.N.C.).

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

St. Croix, USVI – U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced today that a St. Croix man was arrested on September 28, 2021, on criminal charges related to his alleged marijuana grow.

According to court documents, Virgin Islands Police Department Officers were dispatched to the residence of Mikey Luke, age 48, of Anna’s Hope, St. Croix, on a report of alleged child abuse. During that investigation, officer observed marijuana plants outside of his house. A subsequent search revealed 178 growing marijuana plants.

Luke is charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute. If convicted, Luke faces a potential of 5 - 40 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Virgin Islands Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel H. Huston is prosecuting the case.

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

U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland met in Washington, D.C. yesterday afternoon with Mexico Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero. The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to work closely on criminal investigations and prosecutions of cross-border crime, including with regard to narcotics and firearms trafficking, human smuggling and trafficking, and illicit finance and money laundering. The Attorneys General also agreed on the importance of our extradition relationship, and committed to vigorously pursuing the extradition requests pending in each of our countries. 

Recognizing that continuing and intensive cooperation between their departments is essential, the Attorneys General agreed to continue their bilateral dialogue on a regular basis to help protect the citizens and communities on both sides of our common border. 

The Department of Justice announced today that Santander Consumer USA Inc, dba Chrysler Capital (Santander), has agreed to pay more than $134,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that the company denied early motor vehicle lease terminations to servicemembers who qualified for them under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA). The department previously settled an SCRA lawsuit against Santander in 2015 for repossessing the vehicles of 1,112 servicemembers without a court order.

“The civil rights of servicemembers who sacrifice so much for our country must be respected,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We are committed to ensuring that those serving in our nation’s military receive the full range of benefits and protections that they are entitled to under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act.”

“Given all our veterans put on the line when they deploy or change station, the last thing they should have to worry about is their car lease,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Prerak Shah for the Northern District of Texas. “The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act is designed to ease the financial burdens associated with active duty military service. We are determined to uphold this important law.”

The SCRA permits servicemembers to terminate their motor vehicle leases early without penalty after entering military service or receiving qualifying military orders for a permanent change of station or to deploy to another location.

Today’s settlement, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, resolves a lawsuit filed today by the Department of Justice. The lawsuit alleges that Santander unlawfully denied early motor vehicle lease terminations to ten servicemembers.

Under the proposed settlement, Santander must pay $94,282.62 in compensation to the ten aggrieved servicemembers and a $40,000 civil penalty to the U.S. Treasury. As part of the agreement, the company has also updated its SCRA procedures and training.

The department’s investigation, which began in 2019, stemmed from a complaint submitted by U.S. Army Captain Eric McDowell. Captain McDowell entered into a three-year lease in October 2017 for a Jeep Grand Cherokee, but he learned in May 2019 that he was going to be deployed to Afghanistan. In August 2019, he returned the vehicle to Santander and tried to terminate the lease, but the company denied his termination request. It was not until February 2020, after the United States had opened its investigation and six months after Captain McDowell returned his vehicle to the dealership, that Santander finally approved the lease termination, voided early termination charges, and refunded the lease amounts that had been paid in advance. Captain McDowell faced significant stress during his deployment to Afghanistan as a result of this six-month delay. The department’s investigation uncovered nine additional servicemembers whose SCRA rights it alleges Santander violated.

Servicemembers and their dependents who believe their SCRA rights have been violated should contact the nearest Armed Forces Legal Assistance Program Office. Office locations can be found at http://legalassistance.law.af.mil/.

The Justice Department’s enforcement of the SCRA is conducted by the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section and U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the country. Since 2011, the department has obtained over $476 million in monetary relief for over 121,000 servicemembers through its enforcement of the SCRA. Additional information on the department’s enforcement of the SCRA and other laws protecting servicemembers is available at www.servicemembers.gov.

The Justice Department announced that Pendergraph Development LLC and several related entities have agreed to pay $300,000 to settle claims that they violated the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to build 46 multifamily housing complexes in North Carolina and South Carolina with required accessible features for people with disabilities. As part of the settlement, the defendants also agreed to make extensive retrofits to remove accessibility barriers at the complexes. 

The settlement, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, requires the defendants to pay all costs related to the retrofits, $275,000 into a settlement fund to compensate individuals harmed by the inaccessible housing, and a civil penalty of $25,000 to the government.

“For decades the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act have required that new housing complexes be built with accessible features for people with disabilities,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We will continue aggressively enforcing our federal civil rights laws to ensure that people with disabilities have access to the housing options of their choice.”

Under the settlement, the defendants will, among other things, replace steeply-sloped walkways and install new walkways to help residents reach units, amenities, mailboxes and entrances to the properties, remove obstacles from pedestrian pathways, and widen doorways and modify bathrooms so they are accessible for individuals who use wheelchairs. The settlement also requires the defendants to receive training about the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act to take steps to ensure that their future multifamily housing construction complies with these laws and to provide periodic reports to the Justice Department.

The complexes at issue, all of which were built with financial assistance from the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program and some of which are marketed as housing for elderly persons, are:

1. Cottages at Twin Oaks, Angier, NC
2. Cottages at Brevard, Brevard, NC
3. McKinley Place, Coats, NC
4. Wilton Place, Creedmoor, NC
5. Laurel Pointe Apartments, Goldsboro, NC
6. Laurel Pointe Apartments II, Goldsboro, NC
7. Lochstone Apartments, Goldsboro, NC
8. Oxford Plantation, Goldsboro, NC
9. Sierra Gardens, Hamlet, NC
10. Signal Ridge, Hendersonville, NC
11. Franklin Ridge, High Point, NC
12. Abby Gardens, Kinston, NC
13. Andover Park, Kinston, NC
14. Cambridge Farms, Kinston, NC
15. Greenbrier Landing, Kinston, NC
16. Loris Garden, Loris, NC
17. Cleveland Ridge, Mountain, NC
18. Kings Falls Apartments, Mountain, NC
19. Hamilton Ridge Apartments, Oak City, NC
20. Wyndsor Downs, Polkton, NC
21. Oaks at Brier Creek, Raleigh, NC
22. The Meadows at Brier Creek, Raleigh, NC
23. Greenridge Apartments, Rockingham, NC
24. Whitford Place, Salem, NC
25. Lanier Pointe I, Shelby, NC
26. Lanier Pointe II, Shelby, NC
27. Glen Lake Apartments, Smithfield, NC
28. James Pointe Apartments, Statesville, NC
29. Evans Pointe I, Tabor City, NC
30. Evans Pointe II, Tabor City, NC
31. Hawthorne Court Apartments, Tarboro, NC
32. Kingston Ridge Apartments, Thomasville, NC
33. Bayleaf Plantation, Washington, NC
34. Clifton Park, Washington, NC
35. Cottages at Glendale, Wilson, NC
36. Glendale Woods, Wilson, NC
37. Morgan’s Ridge I, Wilson, NC
38. Morgan’s Ridge II, Wilson, NC
39. Wesley Landing, Wilson, NC
40. Manor Ridge Apartments, Wingate, NC
41. Glen Arbor Apartments, Aiken, SC
42. Port Royal, Beaufort, SC
43. Azalea Gardens Apartments, Lancaster, SC
44. Cottages at Azalea Apartments, Lancaster, SC
45. Miller’s Ridge Apartments, Lancaster, SC
46. Palmettos Way, Loris, SC

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

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

More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. Individuals may report disability discrimination or other forms of housing discrimination by calling the Justice Department at 1-833-591-0291, or submitting a report online at www.civilrights.justice.gov. Individuals also may report discrimination by contacting the Department of Housing and Urban Development at 1-800-669-9777, or by filing a complaint online.

Firestone Polymers LLC (Firestone) has agreed to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Air Act and several other federal and state environmental laws at the company’s synthetic rubber manufacturing facility in Sulfur, Louisiana. The company will also pay a total of $3.35 million in civil penalties.

The settlement requires several actions from Firestone, including meeting emissions limits, operating and maintenance requirements, equipment controls, limiting hazardous air pollutants from facility dryers, conducting inspections of heat exchangers, installing controls and monitors on covered flares, and installing flaring instrumentation and monitoring systems. After being notified of the violations but prior to the consent decree being lodged, Firestone took other compliance measures, including installing and operating a regenerative thermal oxidizer system to receive waste gases from dryers, reducing n-hexane solvent concentrations and inspecting and testing heat exchangers.

The Department of Justice, on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and co-plaintiff Louisiana Department of Environment Quality (LDEQ), filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. The complaint alleges that the facility emitted excess amounts of pollutants including nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, and hazardous air pollutants including 1,3-butadiene, n-hexane, styrene, formaldehyde, methanol and others. Additionally, the company allegedly failed to comply with requirements related to equipment such as dryers, cooling towers and flares; leak detection and repair; mechanical integrity; and monitoring and reporting. The complaint also asserts violations of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act; the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act; the Pollution Prevention Act; and Louisiana state air pollution control requirements.

“This settlement will ensure cleaner air for the citizens of Louisiana and the communities near Firestone’s plant,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “It also enforces the company’s obligation to inform local communities of potential chemical hazards to aid state and local efforts to control accidental releases.”

“Businesses such as Firestone Polymers have a sacred obligation to protect Louisiana’s environment and to use our natural resources wisely,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook for the Western District of Louisiana. “This settlement sends a clear message that those who don’t honor this obligation will be held accountable.” 

“The Clean Air Act is vital to protecting people’s health, and the Sulfur Firestone facility violated these protections as Louisiana’s highest emitter of three types of hazardous air pollutants,” said Acting Regional Administrator David Gray of the EPA. “EPA’s legal and enforcement team, working with DOJ and LDEQ, held the company accountable for reducing emissions, and won additional benefits for environmental justice communities in Southwest Louisiana with improved air monitoring systems. I congratulate our team for their hard work on behalf of the people of Louisiana.” 

“The violations detailed in the complaint represent Firestone’s disregard for the Clean Air Act, which is an underlying authority for environmental regulation in the United States,” said Secretary Dr. Chuck Carr Brown of LDEQ. “LDEQ and our federal partner, EPA, will vigorously pursue any violators of the CAA. These penalties and the beneficial environmental project under the consent decree are the result of our efforts. The beneficial environmental project’s funds will be used to support additional ambient air monitoring in the Westlake and southwest Louisiana areas, which will assist LDEQ’s efforts to improve air quality for these communities.”

As part of the consent decree, Firestone will pay a civil penalty of $2,098,678.50 to the United States and $1,251,321.50 to LDEQ for a total of $3,350,000. Firestone will also complete a Beneficial Environmental Project in Louisiana by funding ambient air monitoring system upgrades in several locations in southwest Louisiana.

The consent decree was lodged with the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana and is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. A copy of the decree will be available on the Department of Justice website at: www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.

The Justice Department announced today that it filed a civil complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia against Prince George County, Virginia, and the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) to enforce employment rights guaranteed to a member of the Virginia Army National Guard, Major Mark Gunn, under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).

In its complaint, the United States alleges that Gunn had been a detective with the Prince George County Police Department for 14 years when, in January 2016, he was called to active duty by the Virginia Army National Guard. The United States further alleges that when Gunn returned from his active-duty service, the County refused to allow Gunn to return to his detective position. Instead, the County demoted him to a Patrol Unit officer position. The United States also alleges that the County denied Gunn employment benefits that he would have accrued during his period of active-duty service, including a bonus awarded to County employees. Finally, the United States alleges that the County’s unlawful actions caused Gunn to leave his employment with the Prince George County Police Department and return to active duty in the Virginia Army National Guard. The complaint seeks to have Gunn effectively reinstated to his prior detective position and to recover employment benefits that the County denied him during his period of active-duty service from 2016 to 2018, as well as the VRS pension credits and benefits that he lost as a result of the County’s USERRA alleged violations.

“Servicemembers who take military leave from their civilian jobs to serve their country are entitled to return to their prior positions without having to sacrifice their hard-earned promotions and employment benefits,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Department of Justice will work tirelessly to enforce federal laws that protect the rights of servicemembers when they are called up to service.”

“It is our profound duty to help protect the brave servicemembers who temporarily leave their civilian employment when called upon to serve our country in times of need,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Raj Parekh for the Eastern District of Virginia. “These courageous Americans make immeasurable personal sacrifices associated with safeguarding the freedoms we enjoy. We will do everything we can to ensure that civilian employers comply with their legal obligation to return these honorable women and men to their previous jobs following their military service.”

USERRA protects the rights of uniformed servicemembers to retain their civilian employment following absences due to military service obligations and provides that servicemembers shall not be discriminated against because of their military obligations. USERRA also requires employers to provide pension benefits when their employees are called to active duty. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia and Justice Department gives high priority to the enforcement of servicemembers’ rights under USERRA. Additional information about USERRA can be found on the Justice Department’s websites at www.justice.gov/crt-military/employment-rights-userra and www.justice.gov/servicemembers as well as on the Department of Labor’s (DOL) website at www.dol.gov/vets/programs/userra.

This case stems from a referral by the U.S. Department of Labor, at Major Gunn’s request, after an investigation by that agency’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service. The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deirdre Brou, Lauren Oberheim, and Robert McIntosh, and as a part of the Servicemember and Veterans’ Initiative within the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Trial Attorney Shan Shah in the Employment Litigation Section of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

Today, at a press conference, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco and DEA Administrator Anne Milgram announced a significant law enforcement surge to protect American communities from the flood of fentanyl and fentanyl-laced pills across the United States. Illicit fentanyl, a synthetic opioid found in most of the fake pills that were seized, is the primary driver of the recent increase in U.S. overdose deaths.

“Opioids were responsible for nearly three quarters of the more than 93,000 fatal drug overdoses in the United States in 2020,” said Deputy Attorney General Monaco. “The pervasiveness of these illicit drugs, and the fatal overdoses that too often result, is a problem that cuts across America from small towns to big cities and everything in between. One pill can kill. The department will continue to use all of the resources at its disposal to save lives, complementing strong enforcement efforts with public awareness and outreach campaigns, as well.”

“During the past eight weeks, DEA has targeted the criminal drug networks flooding the U.S. with deadly, fentanyl-laced fake pills,” said DEA Administrator Milgram. “DEA remains steadfast in its commitment reduce drug-related violence and overdose deaths by dismantling the violent, criminal drug distribution networks across the United States. The fentanyl-laced fake pills seized by DEA could potentially kill more than 700,000 Americans. I urge the American public today to talk to their loved ones about the threats and dangers of fake pills and the simple fact that one pill can kill.”

Mexican criminal drug networks are mass-producing illicit fentanyl and fentanyl-laced fake pills, using chemicals sourced largely from China, and are distributing these pills through U.S. criminal networks. These fake pills are designed to appear nearly identical to legitimate prescriptions such as Oxycontin®, Percocet®, Vicodin®, Adderall®, Xanax® and other medicines. Criminal drug networks are selling these pills through social media, e-commerce, the dark web and existing distribution networks. As a result, these fake pills are widely available. The Department of Justice will continue to collaborate closely with its international partners, within Mexico and around the world, to aggressively investigate and prosecute the members of these drug networks.

These fake pills are more lethal than ever. DEA laboratory testing reveals that today, four out of 10  fentanyl-laced fake pills contain a potentially lethal dose. Moreover, the number of fake pills containing fentanyl has jumped nearly 430% since 2019.

On Aug. 3, DEA launched a nationwide law enforcement effort to address the alarming increase in the availability and lethality of fentanyl-laced fake pills. Fentanyl — in powder and pill form — is a significant U.S. public health threat that is killing tens of thousands of Americans. Over the past two months, working in concert with federal, state and local law enforcement partners, DEA seized 1.8 million fentanyl-laced fake pills and arrested 810 drug traffickers in cities, suburbs and rural communities spanning the United States. The amount of deadly fentanyl-laced fake pills seized by DEA since Aug. 3 is enough to kill more than 700,000 Americans. These recent seizures add to the more than 9.5 million potentially deadly fake pills that DEA seized in the past year, which is more than the last two years combined.

During the two-month law enforcement surge targeting fake pills, DEA also seized 712 kilograms of fentanyl powder: enough to make tens of millions of lethal pills. DEA seized 158 weapons and many of the enforcement actions are tied to violence and overdose deaths. Additionally, DEA seized 4,011 kilograms of methamphetamine and 653 kilograms of cocaine.

DEA issued a Public Safety Alert on Monday, Sept. 27, warning the American public about the increasing availability of fake pills that are more deadly than ever before, and that are easy to purchase, widely available, and often contain deadly doses of fentanyl. DEA also launched the One Pill Can Kill campaign to inform the American public of the dangers of fake prescription pills. The only safe medications are ones prescribed by a trusted medical professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist. Any pills that do not meet this standard are unsafe and potentially deadly.

For more information, visit DEA.Gov/onepill. 

A federal court on Sept. 28, issued a temporary restraining order against Daniel Gingerich, an Iowa dog breeder, based on claims that he is placing the health of hundreds of dogs in “serious danger” in violation of the Animal Welfare Act (AWA).

U.S. District Court Judge Stephanie M. Rose granted the relief requested by the Justice Department and ordered Gingerich, and any of his business associates and employees, to identify all locations of dogs intended for breeding or sale, have a licensed veterinarian complete a physical examination “from head to tail” of every dog, and timely provide the veterinary records of those examinations and any other veterinary care to the Department of Justice. Additionally, Gingerich must immediately cease from breeding, euthanizing or otherwise disposing of any dogs without the consent of the Department of Justice or a court order.

The Department of Justice filed a complaint for injunctive relief in the Southern District of Iowa on Sept. 28, along with a motion for temporary restraining order, alleging that Gingerich is failing to provide the dogs with adequate veterinary care, nutritious food in a sufficient quantity, potable water and housing that is both safe and sanitary. According to the complaint, Gingerich is evading federal oversight by denying U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) inspectors’ access to breeding locations and hiding dogs from inspection. On one occasion, APHIS inspectors discovered hidden in a horse barn a number of live dogs running around two dead dogs. The dogs at Gingerich’s facilities also were being fed moldy and contaminated food and lacked access to potable water. In addition, multiple litters of puppies were not being properly vaccinated against distemper and parvovirus, resulting in multiple disease outbreaks.

“This case shows that there will be consequences for breeders who violate the obligations of their breeding license and endanger the lives and health of the animals in their care,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The Animal Welfare Act exists to protect these animals, and the Department of Justice will vigorously enforce this law and hold to account those who violate it.”

“This action demonstrates the shared commitment of the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to use all available tools to ensure the effective and expeditious enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act,” said General Counsel Janie Simms Hipp of the USDA.

Gingerich has been licensed as a dog breeder since October 2019. In the last six months alone, he has amassed at least 100 violations of the Animal Welfare Act at approved and unapproved facilities in Iowa. During one recent inspection, APHIS inspectors observed a severely emaciated golden retriever, several dogs with untreated and painful eye conditions, and a non-responsive puppy that died moments later.

In September, the USDA determined that Gingerich is placing the health of the dogs in serious danger, in violation of the Animal Welfare Act, and its regulations and standards. The court agreed with the government’s assessment, describing the medical care the dogs receive as “shockingly inadequate” and the food and water at the facilities as “no better.” The court also held that once the United States makes a proper showing that the animals are in serious danger, injunctive relief is mandated by AWA.

Senior Trial Attorney Mary Hollingsworth and Trial Attorney Shampa A. Panda of the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division are handling this case. They are assisted by the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa. This case is being investigated by USDA’s APHIS.

A former Insys Therapeutics sales representative, whose trial had commenced, pleaded guilty in the Southern District of Ohio to conspiracy to defraud the United States for her involvement in a scheme to pay kickbacks to a doctor to induce him to prescribe Subsys, a dangerous sublingual fentanyl spray.

According to court documents and evidence presented in court, Nicole Georges, 43, of Columbus, Ohio, admitted to her involvement in a kickback scheme initiated by Insys Therapeutics in which practitioners were incentivized to prescribe Subsys by receiving payments through a sham “Speaker Program.” Georges facilitated “speaker payments” to her co-defendant, Dr. Jimmy Henry, whose prescribing of Subsys dramatically rose during the period in which he received payments from Insys, despite not engaging in many of these speaking events. Georges also assisted in facilitating insurance paperwork through Insys to assure that the Subsys prescriptions issued by Henry would be reimbursed by insurance programs, including Medicare and Ohio Medicaid. Georges received significant bonuses for her so-called “sales” of Subsys. For his part, Henry pleaded guilty to the distribution of controlled substances and violating the Anti-Kickback Statute on Sept. 8.

Georges faces a statutory maximum penalty of 60 months’ imprisonment. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Vipal J. Patel for the Southern District of Ohio, Special Agent in Charge J. William Rivers of the FBI’s Cincinnati Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.

The FBI, HHS-OIG, Ohio Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Christopher Jason and Katherine Pridemore of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section leads the Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid (ARPO) Strike Force. Since its inception in October 2018, the ARPO Strike Force, which operates in 10 districts, has charged more than 90 defendants who are collectively responsible for distributing more than 105 million pills. Since its inception in March 2007, the Health Care Fraud Strike Force, which maintains 15 strike forces operating in 24 districts, has charged more than 4,600 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for approximately $23 billion. In addition, the Health and Human Services Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

The Justice Department has filed a complaint against Asotin County, Washington, alleging that the County discriminated against a female deputy clerk on the basis of sex in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII is a federal statute that prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin and religion.  The United States and Asotin County also filed a joint notice of settlement informing the court that they plan to submit a proposed consent decree that, if approved and entered by the court, would resolve the United States’ complaint.

The complaint, which was filed by the United States in the Eastern District of Washington, alleges that an Asotin County deputy clerk was subjected to sexually harassing conduct by a former Superior Court judge, including both physical touching and verbal harassment, creating a hostile work environment and that the County negligently failed to take prompt and adequate action to stop the harassment. The joint notice of settlement describes the general terms of the proposed consent decree. If the consent decree is approved by the court, Asotin County will offer the female deputy clerk $100,000 in compensatory damages. Asotin County also must designate individuals responsible for receiving and investigating employees’ complaints of harassment for the duration of the decree, maintain and adhere to a written policy addressing sex discrimination, including sexual harassment, and provide mandatory training regarding Title VII’s prohibitions against sex discrimination to all its employees.

“No employee should be subject to unlawful sexual harassment on the job, and the Justice Department is committed to holding employers accountable when they fail to act promptly to protect employees and stop the unlawful conduct,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The proposed consent decree requires the County to undertake comprehensive actions necessary to protect employees from sex harassment, and effective measures to receive and investigate complaints of discrimination and harassment.”

“Discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace are unlawful,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph Harrington for the Eastern District of Washington. “An employer’s failure to take affirmative acts to intervene in response to discrimination and/or sexual harassment reports violates federal law, and risks an investigation and corrective measures by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The County’s voluntary agreement with the terms and conditions of the consent decree will ensure that future reports of sexual harassment and/or discrimination will be addressed promptly and thoroughly.” 

The female deputy clerk filed a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC’s Seattle Field Office investigated the charge and made a reasonable cause finding. After unsuccessful conciliation efforts, the EEOC referred the charge to the Justice Department.

The Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section brought the case in collaboration with the U.S. Attorneys’ Office for the Eastern District of Washington.

More information about Title VII and other federal employment laws is available on the Civil Rights Division’s website at www.justice.gov/crt.

The Department of Justice announced today that American Honda Finance Corporation (AHFC) has agreed to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that it violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) by failing to refund a type of up-front lease payment to servicemembers who lawfully terminated their motor vehicle leases early. Under the settlement agreement, AHFC must pay up to $1,585,803.89 in compensation to 714 servicemembers who were harmed by the alleged violations.

“This case illustrates the Justice Department’s steadfast commitment to protecting the rights of servicemembers,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We will continue to vigorously enforce federal law to ensure that no servicemember faces unlawful treatment by auto leasing companies or other entities.”

“Servicemembers selflessly heed the call to duty, and their sacrifice should not subject them to unlawful economic harm,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Tracy L. Wilkison of the Central District of California. “This settlement is the latest resulting from investigations my office has conducted in conjunction with Justice Department attorneys to ensure our brave men and women in uniform can perform without having to worry about unjust actions at home.”

The SCRA permits servicemembers to terminate motor vehicle leases early without penalty after entering military service or receiving qualifying military orders for a permanent change of station or to deploy. When servicemembers lawfully terminate motor vehicle leases, the SCRA requires that they be refunded all lease amounts paid in advance.

AHFC is a California-based auto-financing company that provides auto-leasing for customers of Honda and Acura. Individuals who lease vehicles from AHFC, including servicemembers, often contribute an up-front monetary amount at lease signing, in the form of a cash payment, credit for a trade-in vehicle, or rebates or other credits. A portion of this up-front amount can be applied to the first month of the lease and certain up-front costs such as licensing and registration fees. The remainder, which is called the capitalized cost reduction amount, operates to reduce the monthly payment the lessee must make over the term of the lease.

Today’s settlement, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, resolves a lawsuit filed today by the Department of Justice. The lawsuit alleges that, while AHFC regularly provided refunds of cash payments toward capitalized cost reduction made by servicemembers, AHFC failed to provide refunds of vehicle trade-in credit that was applied toward capitalized cost reduction, in violation of the SCRA.

In addition to compensating 714 servicemembers, the settlement requires AHFC to pay $64,715 to the U.S. Treasury to adopt new policies and implement new training requirements.

Servicemembers and their dependents who believe their SCRA rights have been violated should contact the nearest Armed Forces Legal Assistance Program Office. Office locations can be found at http://legalassistance.law.af.mil/.

The Justice Department’s enforcement of the SCRA is conducted by the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section and U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the country. Since 2011, the department has obtained over $476 million in monetary relief for over 121,000 servicemembers through its enforcement of the SCRA. Additional information on the department’s enforcement of the SCRA and other laws protecting servicemembers is available at www.servicemembers.gov.

A federal court in the Southern District of Florida has ordered a Miami-area tax preparer to pay a $403,969.70 contempt sanction for violating a permanent injunction that barred her from preparing, filing or assisting in the preparation or filing of federal tax returns for others.

The United States filed a complaint against Milagros Espinal on Feb. 7, 2011, that alleged that she had prepared returns for customers that claimed deductions for fraudulent medical expenses, charitable contributions and unreimbursed employee business expenses. According to the complaint, an IRS review of returns she prepared uncovered errors in 97% of the returns the agency examined. The parties contemporaneously filed a consent order, in which Espinal agreed to a full bar on return preparation. On Feb. 16, 2011, the court issued a permanent injunction.

On Aug. 18, 2021, following an evidentiary hearing, the court found that the United States proved by clear and convincing evidence that Espinal continued to prepare returns in violation of the injunction and held Espinal in contempt. The court stated in its order that it would decide the appropriate contempt sanction at a later date. Today, in ordering her to pay $403,969.70 to coerce her compliance with the injunction, and to compensate the Treasury for the harm Espinal caused, the court found that the government “had demonstrated that $395,280 is a reasonable approximation of [Espinal’s] ill-gotten gains.” According to the order, the balance of the sanction ($8,689.75) represents the costs the United States incurred to investigate and litigate Espinal’s actions violating the court’s injunction.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’s’ Dirty Dozen Tax Scams and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. (More information can also be found here.) The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax preparer, has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers, and offers information on how to avoid “ghost” tax preparers, whose refusal to sign a return should be a red flag to taxpayers.

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

 The Justice Department announced that Mills Construction Company Inc. and several related entities have agreed to pay $275,000 to settle claims that they violated the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by failing to build 38 multifamily housing complexes in North Carolina with required accessible features for people with disabilities. As part of the settlement, the defendants also agreed to make extensive retrofits to remove accessibility barriers at the complexes.

The settlement, which must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, requires the defendants to pay all costs related to the retrofits, $225,000 into a settlement fund to compensate individuals harmed by the inaccessible housing and a civil penalty of $50,000 to the government.

“For over 30 years, the Fair Housing Act has required that new housing complexes be accessible to individuals with disabilities,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “By requiring modifications to the properties, this settlement will reduce substantial barriers faced by people with disabilities in their own homes and will advance the Fair Housing Act’s promise of housing that is accessible for all.”

Under the settlement, the defendants will, among other things, replace steeply-sloped walkways so residents can reach mailboxes and entrances to the properties, remove obstacles from pedestrian pathways, install lever handles on doors and widen doorways to provide sufficient space for individuals who use wheelchairs. The complexes at issue, many of which were built with financial assistance from the federal government’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program, are:

1. Perry Lane Apartments, Arden, Columbus County;
2. Dunbar Place Apartments, Asheville, Buncombe County;
3. Smith Creek Apartments, Bermuda Run, Davie County;
4. Emerald Forest Apartments, Biscoe, Montgomery County;
5. Willow Oak Run Apartments, Charlotte, Mecklenburg County;
6. Soco Creek Village Apartments, Cherokee, Swain/Jackson Counties;
7. River Run Apartments, Chocowinity, Beaufort County;
8. Sampson Square Apartments, Clinton, Sampson County;
9. Long Creek Apartments, Dallas, Gaston County;
10. Long Creek II, Dallas, Gaston County;
11. Lovett Square Apartments, Durham, Durham County;
12. Savannah Place Apartments, Durham, Durham County;
13. Sherwood Park Apartments, Durham, Durham County;
14. Filbert’s Creek Apartments, Edenton, Chowan County;
15. Lakeside Apartments, Elizabeth City, Pasquotank County;
16. Enfield Pointe Apartments, Enfield, Halifax County;
17. Myrtle Place Apartments, Goldsboro, Wayne County;
18. Woodlane Street Apartments, Granite Falls, Caldwell County;
19. Kittrell Place Apartments, Greenville, Pitt County;
20. Best Village I Apartments, Kinston, Lenoir County;
21. Best Village II Apartments, Kinston, Lenoir County;
22. Forest Hill Apartments, Lexington, Davidson County;
23. Fairview Manor Apartments, Lillington, Harnett County;
24. Fairview Pointe Apartments, Lillington, Harnett County;
25. Northeast Pointe Apartments, Lumberton, Robeson County;
26. Mocksville Pointe Apartments, Mocksville, Davie County;
27. Sandy Ridge Apartments, Raeford, Hoke County;
28. Chestnut Hills Apartments, Raleigh, Wake County;
29. Hodges Creek Apartments, Raleigh, Wake County;
30. Marsh Creek Apartments, Raleigh, Wake County;
31. Milburnie Road Apartments, Raleigh, Wake County;
32. West Oaks Apartments, Raleigh, Wake County;
33. Chapel Ridge Apartments, Roanoke Rapids, Halifax County;
34. Chapel Ridge Manor Apartments, Roanoke Rapids, Halifax County;
35. Rollinwood Manor Apartments, Rocky Mount, Edgecombe County;
36. Firetower Crossing Apartments, Sanford, Lee County;
37. Sandhill Manor Apartments, Sanford, Lee County; and
38. Tabor Landing Apartments, Tabor City, Columbus County.

The Mills defendants cooperated fully with the department’s investigation. 

Individuals who believe they or someone they know may have had difficulties because of the inaccessible conditions at any of these properties should e-mail the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov or leave a message at 1-833-591-0291, selecting option 1 for English, selecting option 4 for housing accessibility for persons with disabilities, and selecting option 3 for Mills. 

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

More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. Individuals may report disability discrimination or other forms of housing discrimination by calling the Justice Department at 1-833-591-0291, or submitting a report online at www.civilrights.justice.gov. Individuals also may report discrimination by contacting the Department of Housing and Urban Development at 1-800-669-9777, or by filing a complaint online.

FALLS CHURCH, VA – The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) today announced its “Access EOIR” initiative. Through this multi-faceted effort, EOIR aims to increase access to information and raise the level of representation for individuals appearing before the immigration courts. Following the Agency’s recent launch of the FOIA Public Access Link to simplify access to records, more than 100 meetings with stakeholders throughout the past eight months, and ongoing deployment of the EOIR Courts & Appeals System, the latest efforts include the new Counsel for Children Initiative (CCI) and the refresh of the Model Hearing Program (MHP).

“I am pleased to announce our launch of the ‘Access EOIR’ initiative,” said EOIR Director David Neal. “By providing noncitizens and their representatives with more resources, we can better ensure that respondents understand immigration court proceedings, that legal representation before EOIR will increase, and that the public will grow more confident in the due process our Immigration Judges provide.”

The CCI works to provide legal representation to certain unaccompanied children who are in immigration proceedings in the eight immigration courts in which Government-funded counsel for children will have the greatest impact: Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland. Through this initiative, EOIR will also help to identify children who have been victims of human trafficking or abuse and refer them to appropriate support services.

EOIR is also launching updated trainings under MHP today. The MHP is an educational program for those who practice, or would like to explore practice, in EOIR’s immigration courts. With the goal of increasing advocacy in immigration court—in quantity and quality—EOIR is providing training and resources for multiple learning types through these efforts. Today, EOIR will hold the first of 11 scheduled MHP events, which will be followed by regularly scheduled MHP events. Each event includes presentations by Immigration Judges, staff attorneys, and court administrators via webinar. MHP events include a model master calendar hearing and a model individual hearing, preceded by a substantive law training to assist participants in understanding the law underlying the event’s case fact pattern.

For those unable to attend an MHP event, and those seeking to revisit the content from live trainings, the MHP is developing recorded materials for on-demand viewing, and has published a dynamic list of resources, available through the Immigration Court Online Resource (ICOR). ICOR also provides information about potential forms of relief through an interactive tool. The MHP is available to provide resources or set up an MHP event upon request from individuals and groups interested in learning more about the mechanics of immigration court proceedings.

“Access EOIR” provides respondents, representatives, and the general public with more direct access to agency and case information and the systems that contain it, further supporting transparency and due process for all those with business before the Agency. EOIR welcomes feedback from the public about ways to expand “Access EOIR.”

A Minnesota concrete contractor pleaded guilty to rigging bids on public concrete repair and construction contracts in the state of Minnesota.

According to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Clarence Olson and his co-conspirators conspired to rig bids on concrete repair and construction contracts submitted to at least four municipalities in the state of Minnesota, which included local governments and school districts in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Olson participated in the long-running conspiracy from at least as early as September 2012 and continuing through at least as late as July 2017.

“This resolution demonstrates the Antitrust Division’s commitment to ensuring the integrity of government procurement at all levels of government,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Bid-rigging schemes that target local government contracts harm taxpayers, and people who take part in these conspiracies will be held accountable for their actions.”

“The defendant in this case rigged bids on contracts that were intended to benefit local governments and school districts in Minnesota,” said Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners are committed to investigating those who attempt to exploit government programs and the American taxpayer.”

Olson pleaded guilty to a violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million criminal fine. The maximum fine 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. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Antitrust Division’s Chicago Office is prosecuting the case, which was investigated with the assistance of the FBI’s Minneapolis Field Office.

In November 2019, the Department of Justice created the PCSF, a joint law enforcement effort to combat antitrust crimes and related fraudulent schemes that impact government procurement, grant and program funding at all levels of government – federal, state and local. For more information, visit https://www.justice.gov/procurement-collusion-strike-force.

Anyone with information in connection with this investigation should contact the Antitrust Division’s Complaint Center at 888-647-3258, or visit http://www.justice.gov/atr/report-violations.

The United States filed suit today under the Clean Air Act (CAA) against the City of New York and the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) and lodged a proposed consent judgment to address the defendants’ longstanding failure to properly monitor and control harmful emissions from NYCDOE oil-fired boilers in New York City public schools. 

Many of NYCDOE’s boilers are located in disadvantaged communities whose residents are exposed to disproportionately high pollution levels that result in adverse health and environmental impacts. The consent judgment, agreed upon by the parties and also filed today with the court, requires NYCDOE to: (1) conduct regular tune-ups to monitor and repair its boilers as required by the CAA to control excess emissions; (2) reduce its boiler emissions by transitioning seven of its largest oil-fired boilers to cleaner, natural gas boilers by 2023, at an approximate cost of $50 million; and (3) pay a civil penalty of $1 million to the United States. 

The complaint and consent judgment were filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, in Brooklyn, New York. Following a 30-day public comment period, the United States will review all comments and, if appropriate, ask the court to enter the consent judgment.

“Students and teachers should not have to be concerned that the air they are breathing at school is harmful to their health,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This settlement will benefit New York’s schools and the communities they serve, who already suffer an unjust burden from polluted air.”

“The United States brought this action to protect our children, teachers, staff, and communities from exposure to high levels of hazardous air particles and particulate matter emitted by oil-fired boilers at NYCDOE schools, many of which are located in areas of the city that are already burdened by disproportionate levels of air pollution,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis for the Eastern District of New York. “This settlement demonstrates that this office and its Environmental Justice Team are committed to addressing environmental justice concerns and reducing dangerous emissions and hazardous air pollutants in disadvantaged communities.”

“Thousands of New York City residents will be breathing cleaner air as a result of this case, many of whom live in communities overburdened by dangerous air pollution and other environmental challenges,” said Acting Regional Administrator Walter Mugdan of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “This case demonstrates EPA’s commitment to advancing environmental justice and working with our partners, like the Justice Department, to ensure compliance with critical federal laws that protect public health and clean air. Children’s health is an EPA priority because children are often more vulnerable than adults to the risks of pollutants and environmental hazards.”

The CAA was passed by Congress in 1970, and amended in 1990, to protect public health and the environment through the regulation of air emissions from both stationary and mobile sources. The 1990 amendments to the law required the EPA to establish standards for air toxics, also known as hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). These standards impose limitations on HAP emissions from a variety of sources. In order to reduce these emissions from oil-fired boilers located at institutional sources including schools, the EPA promulgated national operation and maintenance standards for such boilers in 2011. These standards are commonly referred to as the Area Source Boiler Rule.

NYCDOE, the nation’s largest public-school system, operates oil-fired boilers at hundreds of public schools throughout the city. When these boilers are properly maintained, they play an important role in keeping the schools warm and do not emit excess pollution. When these boilers are not properly maintained, they can emit excess HAPs, along with other regulated pollutants such as particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, carbon monoxide and greenhouse gases. Regular tune-ups, which include monitoring of emissions, can increase a boiler’s combustion efficiency, lowering its actual emissions rate.

Over 1,300 of NYCDOE’s oil-fired boilers, at approximately 566 school facilities, became subject to the Area Source Boiler Rule in 2014. These regulations require boiler operators to conduct regular tune-ups and submit reports to the EPA about the status of all boilers subject to the rule. The rule also required NYCDOE to conduct one-time energy assessments for certain large oil-fired boilers. However, as set forth in the United States’ complaint, NYCDOE failed to comply with these requirements for several years after they took effect. As a result of the EPA’s and Department of Justice’s enforcement efforts, NYCDOE has now brought its boilers into compliance with the CAA. 

The NYCDOE’s failure to properly perform tune-ups resulted in excess emissions that will be reduced under the consent judgment. Notably, many of NYCDOE’s boilers are located in communities identified by the EPA as posing environmental justice concerns, due to the large number of minority or low-income residents who are disproportionately exposed to air pollution and its harmful effects. Particulate matter and HAP emissions are linked to a range of health problems and cause environmental harm. The mitigation projects described below are targeted to provide environmental benefits in these communities. 

The settlement requires the NYCDOE to regularly and properly conduct periodic tune-ups at regulated boilers. These tune-ups will proceed according to a checklist which ensures that the proper procedures and quality assurance measures are followed, and that all necessary maintenance or repairs are identified and addressed. To mitigate past emissions, NYCDOE has also agreed that prior to March 2023 it will convert to natural gas or replace seven large oil-fired boilers that burn more polluting number 4 oil – including one of the largest boilers in the school system, located at K430 (Brooklyn Tech High School). The other schools at which boilers will be replaced or converted are: Q053 (M.S. 53 Brian Piccolo), X029 (P.S./M.S. 029 Melrose School), K068 (I.S. 068 Isaac Bildersee); K306 (P.S. 306 Ethan Allen), M013 and M117 (each containing various co-located schools). These new or converted boilers will emit far less HAPs when running on natural gas, a cleaner-burning fuel. This effort is projected to reduce NYCDOE’s oil consumption and combustion by over three million gallons by November 2027, thereby mitigating excess emissions caused by NYCDOE’s earlier failure to follow the Area Source Boiler Rule. The mitigation projects effectively advance NYCDOE’s compliance with New York City’s PlaNYC, under which the city plans to phase out number 4 oil from all boilers by 2030.   

In June, Acting U.S. Attorney Kasulis announced the creation of an Environmental Justice Team within the Office’s Civil Division comprised of seven Assistant U.S. Attorneys and led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Silverman, the Chief of Environmental Litigation. The Environmental Justice Team’s focus is the protection of the rights of residents of the Eastern District of New York who are disproportionately burdened by environmental and health hazards.

The civil negotiations and settlement were handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Silverman, working with Liliana Villatora and Erick Ihlenburg of the EPA Region 2 Office of Regional Counsel, Chief Robert Buettner of the EPA Region 2 Air Compliance Branch, Chief Gaetano LaVigna of the Stationary Source Compliance Section of Air Compliance Branch and Ray Slizys and Harish Patel, also with the Air Compliance Branch.

The last four of 12 defendants convicted on federal dog fighting charges were sentenced today in Albany, Georgia, by the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia. Collectively, the court sentenced the defendants to a total of 272 months in prison.

On June 22, a federal jury convicted defendant Kizzy Solomon, 44, of Camilla, Georgia, of 15 counts of aiding and abetting the possession and training of dogs for purposes of an animal fighting venture. Eleven other defendants previously pleaded guilty to various offenses related to their participation in a dog fighting ring.

“The injuries that dogs suffer in fights are horrible enough, but this case shows how the cruelty of the dog fighting industry goes far beyond the fighting pit,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “We will continue to vigorously prosecute those who engage in these crimes.”

“Dog-fighting is vicious and illegal; it is also a breeding ground for other dangerous criminal activity that undermines the safety of our communities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary for the Middle District of Georgia. “Our office will not tolerate dog-fighting; we will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to hold offenders accountable with federal prosecution.”

“The cruelty exhibited by these individuals has left a stain on the human psyche of our civilization” said Special Agent in Charge Jason Williams of the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Office of Inspector General (USDA-OIG). “This collaborative effort with our local and federal partners demonstrates that wherever you are, you will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

The individual prison sentences imposed by the court are:

• Germany Brockington, 34, of Ambrose, Georgia – 7 months
• Kevin Charles, also known as “Trinidad,” 45, of Jackson, Georgia – 18 months in prison to be followed by two years of supervised release
• Terry Driggers, 71, of Hoboken, Georgia – time served (a period of approximately 17 months)
• Kentre Gibson, 40, of Douglas, Georgia – 21 months
• Maurice Glover, 48, of Douglas, Georgia – 12 months
• Orlando Johnson, 35, of Americus, Georgia –30 months in prison to be followed by two years of supervised release
• Shadon Johnson, 37, of Fitzgerald, Georgia – 2 years of probation
• Alonza Jordan, 48, of Americus, Georgia – 7 months
• Leslie Meyers, also known as Les Meyers, 44, of Tallahassee, Florida – 123 months in prison to be followed by two years of supervised release (upward departure to statutory maximum of 60 months on each of 4 dog fighting charges, to run concurrent to one another and consecutive to 63 months sentence on firearm)
• Starlin Morgan, 39, of Plains, Georgia – 11 months
• Kizzy Solomon, also known as Kizzy Andrews, 44, of Tallahassee, Florida – 30 months
• Timothy White, 51, of Patterson, Georgia – 11 months

Defendants Brockington, Shadon Johnson and Jordan had been convicted of knowingly spectating at a dog fight, a misdemeanor offense. The other defendants were convicted of felony violations of the Animal Welfare Act and/or felony conspiracy to commit the same. Defendant Meyers had also pleaded guilty to the unlawful possession of a handgun by a person with a prior felony conviction. Meyers had brought a pistol to a dog fight.

This case was based largely on a “two-card” dog fight in Sumter County, Georgia, that was disrupted by law enforcement while in progress on Jan. 21, 2017. According to court documents, Defendant Meyers traveled to the event from Florida with a dog, whom he pitted in a fight against a dog handled by Defendant White.

Meyers’s dog was declared the winner of the dog fight, but refused to complete a “courtesy scratch” – a macabre dog fighting ritual in which a dog who has already won is taken back to a corner of the ring and released one final time to attack the losing dog (or its dead body). The dog’s continuing willingness to attack garners extra prestige for the handler. After Meyers’s dog refused to complete the courtesy scratch, Meyers suffocated the dog to death by hanging him from a tree branch. Law enforcement found this dog’s body under the bumper of Meyers’s car. Authorities also came upon two other live dogs in the middle of a fight, one of which had extensive injuries and had to be euthanized. After most participants fled the scene, agents recovered several firearms and approximately $18,000 in U.S. currency.

Search warrants executed later at the residences of some of the defendants revealed dozens of pit bull-type dogs housed in conditions consistent with dog fighting. Many of these dogs were emaciated and/or had scarring or injuries. Authorities also seized dog fighting equipment, including injectable veterinary steroids and a dog treadmill on which various dogs’ fighting histories, including whether they had perished during dog fights, was printed.

The case was investigated by the USDA-OIG, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office and Decatur County Animal Control. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Crane for the Middle District of Georgia and Trial Attorney Ethan Eddy of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division prosecuted the case.

The Department of Justice today announced that the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), a component of the department’s Office of Justice Programs (OJP), has awarded almost $187 million to support state, local and tribal public safety and community justice activities. The awards, from the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program, are going to all 50 states, the District of Columbia and the territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“Our state, local and tribal law enforcement partners are at the forefront of public safety in their communities, and their effectiveness depends on a justice system that is fair, equitable and engages the communities they serve,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “These awards will help support traditional crime reduction and violence prevention efforts across the country, as well as innovative community violence intervention strategies that increase trust and make communities a full partner in protecting public health and safety.”

“The crime and justice problems facing America today are unique to each community, and so are many of the solutions,” said Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta. “The awards we are announcing today, and many more to come, can be used by our state and local partners to support crime reduction efforts, diversion programs, reentry services and a wide range of public safety activities that are vital in their efforts to keep communities safe and uphold the promise of equal justice to all citizens.” 

The JAG program is the leading source of federal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions. It provides states, tribes and local governments with critical funding to support law enforcement, prosecutors, public defenders, courts and corrections and community corrections agencies. JAG funding also supports crime prevention and education initiatives, drug treatment and enforcement activities, criminal justice planning and evaluation, technology improvements, crime victim and witness initiatives and mental health programs, including behavioral programs and crisis intervention teams.

“Public safety and equal justice are twin, and mutually reinforcing, goals that we have been fighting to achieve,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Amy L. Solomon for the OJP. “The resources we are making available today reflect our unwavering commitment to protecting America’s communities while ensuring that our systems of justice operate fairly, effectively and in a manner that earns the trust of the people they serve.”

In addition to the state JAG awards announced today, BJA will make more than 900 awards, totaling almost $85 million, under its local JAG program in the coming weeks. The JAG program is a key part of the Community Violence Intervention strategy announced by President Biden in April.

To view the JAG allocation amounts, please visit https://bja.ojp.gov/program/jag/fy-2021-allocations.

The Office of Justice Programs provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, advance racial equity in the administration of justice, assist victims and enhance the rule of law. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland today announced the appointment of David L. Neal as the Director of the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) at the Department of Justice.

“The Justice Department’s commitment to a fair and efficient immigration court system, governed by due process and the rule of law, is exemplified by recent policy changes and our pursuit of significant additional resources,” said Attorney General Garland. “David Neal brings invaluable experience that will help further EOIR’s mission.”  

The EOIR director is responsible for the supervision of the Chairman of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the Chief Immigration Judge, the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer and all agency personnel. EOIR has more than 2,300 employees in its 69 immigration courts nationwide, at the BIA and at EOIR headquarters in Falls Church, Virginia. As provided in the President’s Budget Request for FY 22, EOIR anticipates increasing its immigration judge corps from 535 today to 734 by the end of the next fiscal year. 

Most recently, Mr. Neal was a consultant specializing in immigration policy and practice. Previously, he held positions at EOIR over two decades. From 2009 to 2019, he served as Chairman of the BIA at EOIR, where he was chief judge of the appeals board and managed judicial and administrative operations. Mr. Neal served in multiple other capacities at EOIR, including as Vice Chairman of the BIA, Chief Immigration Judge, Assistant Chief Immigration Judge, Immigration Judge and Assistant to the Director.

Prior to his tenure with EOIR, Mr. Neal served in the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee as chief counsel of the Subcommittee on Immigration. Mr. Neal began his legal career as the Director of Policy Analysis at the American Immigration Lawyers Association and also worked for a law firm in Los Angeles, representing immigration cases before the former Immigration and Naturalization Service, the State Department, the Department of Labor and EOIR.

Mr. Neal received his Bachelor of Arts from Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana, Master of Divinity from Harvard University’s School of Divinity and his Juris Doctor from Columbia Law School. Mr. Neal is a member of the District of Columbia and New York bars.

The United States has returned to the Republic of Iraq a rare cuneiform tablet bearing a portion of the Epic of Gilgamesh, a Sumerian poem considered one of the world’s oldest works of literature.

The repatriation ceremony was held today at the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. Known as the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet, the artifact originated in the area of modern-day Iraq and entered the United States contrary to federal law. An international auction house (the Auction House) later sold the tablet to Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. (Hobby Lobby), an arts-and-crafts retailer based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for display at the Museum of the Bible (the Museum). Law enforcement agents seized the tablet from the Museum, pursuant to a judicially-authorized seizure warrant, in September 2019.

Acting Executive Associate Director Steve K. Francis of the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Iraq’s Ambassador to the United States Fareed Yasseen signed a ceremonial certificate transferring ownership of the artifact from the United States to Iraq. Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Stacy White of the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs; Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Joey Hood; Minister of Culture, Tourism and Antiquities Hassan Nadhem; Director-General Audrey Azoulay of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization; and Ambassador-at-large Richard Kurin for the Smithsonian Institution also participated in the repatriation ceremony.

“We hope that returning the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet to the Republic of Iraq is a message to the people of Iraq, and to the world, that the United States government will take action to seize and repatriate antiquities and other significant items of cultural heritage that have been unlawfully brought into the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

“This office is proud to have played a central role in making this rare and ancient cuneiform tablet available for repatriation to its country of origin and the people of Iraq,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis for the Eastern District of New York. “We will continue to use our civil forfeiture laws to combat the illegal sale of cultural treasures so that they may be restored to their rightful place in a country’s history.”  

“Today, Iraq is reclaiming a piece of its cultural history,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Peter C. Fitzhugh of HSI New York. “We are honored to have played a role in the repatriation of this rare tablet that was pillaged from Iraq, only to be sold without a valid provenance and any regard for his cultural value. HSI New York’s Cultural Property, Arts and Antiquity Investigations program will continue to work tirelessly to interrupt the criminal activities of those who loot antiquities and seek to profit off the theft of a country’s rich history.”

As alleged in the government’s amended complaint, in 2003, a U.S. antiquities dealer (the Antiquities Dealer) purchased the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet, encrusted with dirt and unreadable, from a family member of a coin dealer in London. The Antiquities Dealer and a U.S. cuneiform expert shipped the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet to the United States without declaring formal entry. After it was imported and cleaned, experts in cuneiform recognized it as bearing a portion of the Gilgamesh epic in which the protagonist describes his dreams to his mother. The protagonist’s mother interprets the dreams as foretelling the arrival of a new friend. She tells her son, “You will see him and your heart will laugh.” The names of the hero, Gilgamesh, and the character who becomes his friend, Enkidu, are replaced in the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet with the names of deities Sin and Ea. The Gilgamesh Dream Tablet measures approximately 6-inches by 5-inches and is written in the Akkadian language, which was spoken in ancient Mesopotamia.

In 2007, the Antiquities Dealer sold the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet with a false provenance letter that stated that the tablet had been among miscellaneous ancient bronze fragments purchased in a 1981 auction. This false letter traveled with the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet as it was sold several times in different countries, and a later owner provided the letter to the Auction House in London. In 2014, the Auction House sold the Gilgamesh Dream Tablet to Hobby Lobby in a private sale and an Auction House employee carried it on a flight from London to the United States and then transferred it to New York. Hobby Lobby consented to the tablet’s forfeiture based on the tablet’s illegal importation into the United States in 2014.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (MLARS) worked with HSI to forfeit the tablet in July. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided assistance.  

The government’s case was handled by Senior Trial Attorney Ann Brickley of MLARS and Assistant U.S. Attorney Sylvia Shweder of the Eastern District of New York.

Diana Wilhelmsen Management Limited (DWM), a Cyprus-based company that operates several commercial vessels, was sentenced today in federal court before U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Beach Smith in Norfolk, Virginia, after pleading guilty to violations of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships that had occurred on the Motor Vessel (M/V) Protefs.

DWM pleaded guilty to two felony offenses in two judicial districts – the Eastern District of Virginia and the Eastern District of Louisiana. DWM was sentenced to pay a fine of $2 million placed on probation for a period of four years, and ordered to implement a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan as a special condition of probation.

In pleading guilty, DWM admitted that crew members onboard the M/V Protefs, a 40,230 gross-ton, 738-foot ocean-going commercial bulk carrier, knowingly failed to record in the vessel’s oil record book the overboard discharge of oily bilge water from mid-April 2020 until before the vessel arrived in Newport News, Virginia, on June 10, 2020. The vessel also arrived in New Orleans, Louisiana, on June 1, 2020 with a knowingly false oil record book.

DWM admitted that the crew on the vessel used an emergency de-watering system to illegally discharge oily water directly into the ocean from the vessel’s bilge holding tank, duct keel and bilge wells. Those discharges were not recorded in the oil record book as required. The Chief Engineer, Vener Dailisan, pleaded guilty to making a false statement to U.S. Coast Guard inspectors about the existence of a Sounding Log which is routinely sought by inspectors in order to ascertain the accuracy of the oil record book. Dailisan was sentenced to a fine of $3,000 and placed on probation for two years. 

“The United States will vigorously enforce laws that protect our ocean resources,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Holding shipping companies to account when wastes are unlawfully discharged overboard, and covered up through falsified documents, is vital to protecting our environment.”

“We are firmly committed to enforcing federal environmental laws and will not tolerate conduct that pollutes our water, imperils natural ecosystems, and endangers our wildlife,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Raj Parekh for the Eastern District of Virginia. “As this case demonstrates, those who contaminate our most precious natural resources by illegally dumping hazardous waste into the ocean will be held accountable, especially when they falsify their records to avoid detection.”

“The commercial shipping industry is essential to commerce in this region, but their work must ensure they do not neglect their professional and legal obligations,” said U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans for the Eastern District of Louisiana. “Today’s announcement emphasizes that our office along with our federal partners are committed to holding accountable all parties whose criminality jeopardizes our environment and places the public and the ecosystem at risk.”

Senior Trial Attorney Kenneth Nelson of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section, with the assistance of Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Kosky of the Eastern District of Virginia and Assistant U.S. Attorney Julia Evans of the Eastern District of Louisiana,  prosecuted the case. This prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Coast Guard Investigative Service Chesapeake Region and Coast Guard Sector Virginia.

A New York man pleaded guilty today to tax evasion and employment tax fraud.

According to court documents, Rocco Manzione, of Queens, New York, owned and operated a series of concrete companies. From 2014 to 2017, Manzione withheld federal employment taxes from his employees’ wages, but did not timely file his companies’ employment tax returns, nor did he pay the required taxes to the IRS. For the third quarter of 2016 alone, Manzione failed to pay more than $85,000 in payroll taxes that he withheld from wages of employees of Advanced Transit Mix Corp.

In addition to his payroll tax fraud, Manzione evaded his individual income taxes. For tax years 2015 through 2017, Manzione did not file federal income tax returns, even though he earned almost $2,000,000 in income during that period. Manzione also concealed income from the IRS by transferring funds from his concrete companies to a bank account in the name of a nominee corporation called RA Equities LLC. He used some of the funds deposited into the nominee account for personal expenses, and did not report that income to the IRS. In total, Manzione caused a tax loss to the IRS of more than $1.5 million.

Manzione is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison for each count of tax evasion and employment tax fraud. The defendant also faces a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis of the Eastern District of New York made the announcement.

The IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Brittney Campbell and Kathryn Carpenter of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

Two Maryland tax return preparers were sentenced to prison for conspiring to defraud the United States and preparing false tax returns. Lenore Worthy was sentenced yesterday to six months in prison and Veronica Fortune was sentenced on Sept. 14 to 12 months and one day in prison.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the defendants used varying business names, including United Tax Services LLC and Fortune’s Professional Services LLC, to provide tax preparation services. For the tax years 2012 through 2018, the defendants and a third co-conspirator, Anita Fortune, fraudulently inflated their clients’ refunds by fabricating and exaggerating Schedule A itemized deductions and by engineering Schedule C business losses.

According to information in the record, the IRS expelled Worthy from its e-filing program after she and Anita Fortune, who was using Worthy’s e-filing credentials, each prepared false returns for undercover IRS agents. Worthy and Anita Fortune subsequently used Veronica Fortune’s e-filing credentials to conceal their identities from the IRS and continue preparing false returns. The IRS later expelled Veronica Fortune from the e-filing program, but she obtained new credentials from a third party and again shared them with her co-conspirators. All three continued to prepare fraudulent returns through the 2019 filing season, causing a total tax loss to the IRS of $189,748.

In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm ordered Worthy to serve three years of supervised release and pay approximately $189,748 in restitution to the United States. Judge Grimm ordered Fortune to serve three years of supervised release and pay approximately $86,590 in restitution.

Anita previously was sentenced to 30 months in prison on June 4 for her role in the scheme.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

The IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Kathryn Carpenter of the Justice Department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.

Jacob Brown, 31, a former trooper with the Louisiana State Police, was indicted today by a federal grand jury in Shreveport, Louisiana, for using excessive force against an arrestee.

The indictment charges Brown with a single count of deprivation of rights under color of law. Specifically, the indictment alleges that on May 30, 2019, Brown assaulted an arrestee, identified in the indictment only as A.B., by repeatedly striking him in the head and body with a dangerous weapon (a flashlight modified with a metal tactical cap designed for breaking glass). The indictment further alleges that the incident resulted in bodily injury to A.B.

If convicted of the deprivation of rights charge, Brown faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.  

This case was investigated by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luke Walker for the Western District of Louisiana and Trial Attorney Katherine G. DeVar of the Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case.

The department has previously acknowledged that it has open and ongoing criminal investigations into incidents involving the Louisiana State Police that resulted in death or bodily injury to arrestees. Those investigations remain ongoing.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Alexander Van Hook of the Western District of Louisiana made the announcement.

An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence of guilt, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

A federal grand jury in Fort Myers, Florida, returned an indictment on Sept. 22 charging a Florida businessman with defrauding the United States by not disclosing his substantial offshore assets, failing to report substantial income on his tax returns, failing to pay millions of dollars of taxes and submitting a false offshore compliance filing with the IRS in an attempt to avoid substantial penalties and criminal prosecution.

According to the indictment, from 2005 to 2016, Mark Anthony Gyetvay allegedly engaged in a scheme to defraud the United States by concealing his ownership and control over substantial offshore assets and by failing to file and pay taxes on millions of dollars of income. After working as a certified public accountant (CPA) in the United States and Russia, Gyetvay allegedly became the chief financial officer of a large Russian gas company. As part of his compensation package, Gyetvay allegedly received lucrative stock options and/or stock-based compensation. Beginning in 2005, Gyetvay allegedly opened the first of two different Swiss bank accounts to hold these assets, which at one point had an aggregate value of over $93 million. Over a period of several years, Gyetvay allegedly took steps to conceal his ownership and control over the foreign accounts and associated assets, such as removing himself and making his then-wife, a Russian citizen, the beneficial owner of the accounts. Despite being a CPA, Gyetvay also allegedly did not timely file his U.S. tax returns, nor did he file all of the required Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBARs) forms certain U.S. taxpayers are required to file annually that disclose their control over assets maintained in foreign bank accounts. Further, some of the tax returns he did file are allegedly false. The indictment also alleges that Gyetvay submitted a false offshore compliance filing with the IRS through the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures in which he attested that his prior failure to file FBARs and tax returns was non-willful.

Gyetvay is scheduled for his initial court appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Douglas Frazier of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each wire fraud count, five years in prison for each failure to file FBAR count, five years in prison for tax evasion, five years in prison for making a false statement, three years in prison for each count of assisting in the preparation of a false tax return and one year in prison for each willful failure to file a tax return count. The case was assigned to U.S. District Judge John L. Badalamenti, who will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Senior Litigation Counsel Stanley Okula and Trial Attorneys David Zisserson and Kevin Schneider of the Tax Division 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.

A California business executive pleaded guilty today in the District of Columbia for conspiring to make and conceal conduit and excessive campaign contributions during the U.S. presidential election in 2016 and thereafter.

According to the indictment and other court documents, Stevan Hill, 70, of Santa Monica, conspired with Ahmad “Andy” Khawaja, and others, between March 2016 and June 2018, to make unlawful contributions to several political committees, thereby circumventing contribution limits and causing the political committees to unwittingly submit false reports to the Federal Election Commission. Specifically, according to admissions made in connection with Hill’s plea, in August 2016, Khawaja gave Hill $100,000 to contribute in Hill’s name to a political committee supporting a candidate running for U.S. president in the 2016 election cycle. The purpose of making the contribution in Hill’s name was to allow Khawaja to exceed contribution limits set by federal law. The contribution was made in connection with a political event hosted by Khawaja in October 2016.

In addition, Hill admitted that, in June 2017, Khawaja gave him approximately $50,000 to contribute in Hill’s name to another political committee. Again, the purpose of making the contribution in Hill’s name was to allow Khawaja to exceed contribution limits set by federal law.

Hill also admitted that, in January 2018, Khawaja gave him approximately $50,000 to contribute in Hill’s name to another political committee. Again, the purpose of making the contribution in Hill’s name was to allow Khawaja to exceed contribution limits set by federal law. The contribution was made in connection with a political event hosted by Khawaja in March 2018.  

Hill pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to make conduit contributions, make excessive contributions, cause false statements to be made, and cause false entries in records. He is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a statutory maximum of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Charges remain pending against Khawaja, who is a fugitive, and others in the indictment.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Assistant Director in Charge Steven M. D’Anutono of the FBI’s Washington Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI’s Washington Field Office is investigating the case.

Senior Litigation Counsel Victor R. Salgado and Trial Attorney Michelle K. Parikh of the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section (PIN) are prosecuting the case. Former PIN Trial Attorney James C. Mann and PIN Trial Attorney Michael J. Romano also provided significant assistance in the investigation.

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

A federal grand jury in Honolulu, Hawaii, returned a 15-count indictment charging two individuals with conspiring to defraud the United States, filing false tax returns and money laundering.

According to the indictment, from 2015 to 2019, Hannah Heart, Sook Young Jung and another individual allegedly conspired to defraud the United States by seeking fraudulent refunds from the IRS based on false claims that they had paid sizeable tax withholdings. The conspirators allegedly filed a false 2014 amended individual income tax return that claimed a refund of $464,904 and a false 2015 individual income tax return that claimed a refund of $1,134,902. The indictment further alleges that the conspirators took steps to prevent the IRS from recovering the fraudulently obtained refunds, and that Heart and Jung laundered the fraudulently obtained refunds through a series of financial transactions.

Jung was arrested on Sept. 4 and made her initial court appearance on Sept. 7 before U.S. Magistrate Judge S. Kate Vaughan of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. Jung’s matter was ordered transferred to the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii.

Heart was arrested on Sept. 18 and made her initial court appearance on Sept. 21 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Rom Trader of the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii.

If convicted, Heart and Jung each face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for each count of money laundering. Heart and Jung each face a maximum sentence of three years for filing a false tax return and a maximum sentence of five years for conspiracy to defraud the United States. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. 

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Judith A. Philips for the District of Hawaii made the announcement.

The IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Sarah A. Kiewlicz and Valerie G. Preiss of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregg Paris Yates of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii 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.

A federal jury in the Eastern District of Michigan convicted a Michigan doctor today for his role in masterminding and executing a complex scheme to defraud Medicare and other health insurance programs by administering medically unnecessary spinal injections in exchange for prescriptions of high doses of opioids to patients.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Francisco Patino, 66, of Wayne County, excessively prescribed highly addictive opioids to his patients at his medical clinic in Livonia. In exchange for opioids, these patients would receive (or be billed as if they had received) facet joint or nerve block injections, both lucrative spinal injections. Although these spinal injections were purportedly intended to treat chronic pain, evidence at trial demonstrated that Patino injected patients without regard to medical necessity. Evidence also revealed that if patients refused to accept the injections, Patino would withhold their prescriptions for opioids. From January 2012 through July 2017, Patino billed Medicare for more of these injections than any provider in the country. The evidence at trial also showed that in 2016 and 2017, Patino prescribed more 30-milligram Oxycodone pills than every other provider in the state of Michigan.

Patino also developed illegal kickback relationships with at least one diagnostic laboratory, under which he was paid in exchange for referring his patients’ samples to that lab. The evidence showed that the labs funneled money into bank accounts held by others, who then distributed the money to Patino or spent it on his behalf. Patino also spent funds he derived from these various schemes on jewelry, cars, and vacations. A sizable portion of Patino’s fraud proceeds were devoted toward the promotion of Patino’s specialized diet program and lifestyle and wellness book. Patino paid Ultimate Fighting Championship and other mixed martial arts fighters to promote the Patino Diet.

Patino was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, two counts of health care fraud, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay and receive health care kickbacks, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and one count of money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 20, 2022, and faces a maximum total penalty of life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Assistant Director Calvin Shivers of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division; and Special Agent in Charge Lamont Pugh III of the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.

The FBI’s Detroit Field Office and HHS-OIG investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Steven Scott and Kathleen Cooperstein of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

A Michigan man was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison today for filing a false tax return.

According to court documents, Robert Nakfoor, of Lansing, claimed fraudulent expenses for his home health care business, Jessi Kay Home Care, on his 2011 through 2015 tax returns. Nakfoor deducted expenses for insurance, legal and professional services, wages, and contract labor that he knew his business did not incur. For example, just on his 2015 return, Nakfoor claimed over a $1 million in bogus contract labor and legal and professional services expenditures. In total, the defendant caused a tax loss to the IRS of $481,465.

Nakfoor pleaded guilty to willfully filing a false income tax return. In addition to the term of imprisonment, U.S. District Judge Hala Y. Jarbou ordered Nakfoor to serve one year of supervised release and pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $481,465.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Andrew B. Birge of the Western District of Michigan made the announcement.

IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Melissa S. Siskind of the Justice Department’s Tax Division prosecuted the case.

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

A federal grand jury in the Middle District of Florida has returned a six-count indictment against three defendants for their alleged roles in a federal racketeering conspiracy that victimized Mexican H-2A workers who, between 2015 and 2017, had worked in the United States harvesting fruits, vegetables and other agricultural products.

The indictment alleges that from 2015 through 2017, the defendants participated in running a labor contracting company for H-2A agricultural workers called Los Villatoros Harvesting (LVH), which functioned as a criminal enterprise. LVH subjected multiple Mexican H-2A agricultural workers employed in Florida, Kentucky, Indiana, Georgia and North Carolina to forced labor. LVH also harbored H-2A workers in the United States after their visas had expired for financial gain and committed visa fraud and fraud in foreign labor contracting.

The indictment charges Bladimir Moreno, a permanent resident of the United States and citizen of Mexico who owned and managed LVH, and Christina Gamez, a citizen of the United States who worked for LVH as a bookkeeper, manager and supervisor, with conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, conspiracy to commit forced labor, forced labor, and conspiracy to obstruct proceedings before departments, agencies and committees. Guadalupe Mendes Mendoza, a citizen of Mexico who worked as a manager and supervisor for LVH, was charged with conspiracy to obstruct proceedings before agencies.

The indictment alleges that the defendants charged with committing the RICO conspiracy operated LVH as a criminal scheme. They obtained hundreds of hours of physically demanding agricultural labor from the victimized H-2A workers through coercive means, such as imposing debts on workers; confiscating the workers’ passports; subjecting workers to crowded, unsanitary and degrading living conditions, as well as to yelling and verbal abuse; threatening workers with arrest, jailtime and deportation; isolating workers and limiting their ability to interact with anyone other than LVH employees; and suggesting to workers that if they failed to comply with the defendants’ demands, they or their family members could be physically harmed.

This case was investigated by the Palm Beach County Human Trafficking Task Force (to include the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations and the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office), with assistance from the U.S. Department of Labor - Office of the Inspector General, and the U.S. Department of State - Diplomatic Security Service. It will be prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Murray and Trial Attorneys Avner Shapiro and Maryam Zhuravitsky of the Civil Rights Division.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

Two Florida tax preparers pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States and preparing false tax returns.

According to court documents, Nikency Alexis owned and operated Unity Tax & Financial Services, a return preparation business in Broward County. From 2011 through at least 2016, Alexis and Thony Guillaume, a return preparer at Unity Tax, conspired to defraud the IRS by preparing returns for clients that fraudulently increased their clients’ tax refunds. The returns falsely claimed business and education expenses that the clients did not in fact incur. Alexis also made false statements on his own personal income tax returns. In total, the defendants caused an intended tax loss to the IRS of $2,879,078.

Guillaume pleaded guilty today and Alexis pleaded guilty on Sept. 14. Both are scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 30. Both defendants face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge and three years in prison on the filing false tax returns charges. In addition, the defendants face a period of supervised release, restitution, and monetary penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzales for the Southern District of Florida made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Matthew Hicks of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Deric Zacca of the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.

The U.S. Department of Justice, together with Attorneys General in six states and the District of Columbia, sued today in the District of Massachusetts to block an unprecedented series of agreements between American Airlines and JetBlue through which the two airlines will consolidate their operations in Boston and New York City. The civil antitrust complaint alleges that this extensive combination, which they call the “Northeast Alliance,” will not only eliminate important competition in these cities, but will also harm air travelers across the country by significantly diminishing JetBlue’s incentive to compete with American elsewhere, further consolidating an already highly concentrated industry. 

“Millions of consumers across America rely on air travel every day for work, to visit family, or to take vacations. Fair competition is essential to ensuring they can fly affordably and safely,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “In an industry where just four airlines control more than 80% of domestic air travel, American Airlines’ ‘alliance’ with JetBlue is, in fact, an unprecedented maneuver to further consolidate the industry. It would result in higher fares, fewer choices, and lower quality service if allowed to continue. The complaint filed today demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to ensuring economic opportunity and fairness by protecting consumers and competition.”

“The Northeast Alliance would eliminate significant competition in this important industry,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “This sweeping partnership is unprecedented among domestic airlines and amounts to a de facto merger between American and JetBlue in Boston and New York City. The impact on consumers extends far beyond Massachusetts and New York, as evidenced by the participation and our ongoing cooperation with Attorneys General from across the country, including Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia and the District of Columbia, in this lawsuit.”

The Northeast Alliance combines American’s and JetBlue’s operations at four major airports: Boston Logan, John F. Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty. The airlines have committed to coordinate “on all aspects” of network planning, including which routes to fly, when to fly them, who will fly them and what size planes to use for each flight. The two airlines will also share revenues earned at these airports, eliminating their incentives to compete with one another. The Northeast Alliance will also allow the parties to pool their gates and takeoff and landing authorizations, known as “slots.” According to the complaint, this unprecedented combination would raise prices and reduce choices for air passengers traveling to and from Boston and New York City.

As alleged in the complaint, American is the largest airline in the world. Just four airlines — American, along with Delta, United and Southwest — collectively control over 80% of domestic air travel. According to the complaint, American has relentlessly pursued a strategy of industry consolidation in the United States and around the world. Unable to combine with foreign airlines through formal mergers, American has instead pursued consolidation through a series of international joint ventures. The complaint alleges that JetBlue’s CEO stated, “it may look as if a dozen or more airlines [are] providing service. But when you go under the surface, it’s really just three big mega-alliances controlling 87% of the traffic…Consumers effectively have very little choice in markets where JVs have a stranglehold – and they also face higher fares.” The Justice Department alleges that American now seeks to import this strategy to domestic air travel.

According to the complaint, JetBlue has positioned itself as an important source of competition against American and the other large airlines, particularly in the northeast. According to the complaint, JetBlue’s reputation for lowering prices is so established that the industry refers to it as the “JetBlue Effect.” JetBlue’s own internal estimates show that it has saved customers at least $10 billion since its launch, offering lower fares and better service, and forcing its competitors to do the same.     

According to the complaint, the Northeast Alliance will cause hundreds of millions of dollars in harm to air passengers across the country through higher fares and reduced choice. The complaint alleges that prior to entering the Northeast Alliance, JetBlue and American both planned to compete more intensely with one another, including in Boston and New York City, but also in other areas. If allowed to proceed, the Northeast Alliance would eliminate this important existing and future competition — creating, as American’s senior executives put it, “further domestic consolidation.” The Northeast Alliance will dampen American’s incentive to expand service elsewhere in its network and will significantly reduce JetBlue’s incentives to challenge its much larger partner across the country. 

American Airlines Group Inc. is a Delaware corporation with its headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. In 2019, it flew over 215 million passengers to approximately 365 locations worldwide, earning about $45 billion in revenues. 

JetBlue Airways Corporation is a Delaware corporation with its headquarters in Long Island City, New York. In 2019, JetBlue flew over 42 million passengers to approximately 100 locations worldwide, earning about $8 billion in revenue. 

A federal jury sitting in Greensboro, North Carolina, convicted a North Carolina couple of conspiring to defraud the IRS and other federal employment tax and income tax violations.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, from 1992 through the present, James Rice was an orthopedic surgeon who owned and operated Sandhills Orthopaedic, a medical practice located in Pinehurst, North Carolina. His wife, Susan Rice, worked at Sandhills Orthopaedic and handled the administrative operations. Susan Rice also owned and operated a truffle business.

Between 2007 and 2016, the Rices conspired to defraud the United States with respect to Sandhills Orthopaedic’s employment taxes and their individual income taxes. The Rices withheld nearly $580,000 in Social Security and other tax withholdings from Sandhills Orthopaedic’s employees’ wages, but rather than pay the withheld taxes to the IRS, used the withheld taxes to fund personal expenditures. The Rices also did not file individual tax returns for the 2014 through 2016 tax years despite being required to do so by law.

To conceal their income, the Rices transferred funds from Sandhills Orthopaedic’s bank accounts to other accounts that they controlled, such as those for Susan Rice’s truffle business. The Rices also used their business bank accounts to fund personnel expenditures, including a country-club membership, dog kennel boarding and rent for their personal residence. In total, from June 2013 through December 2016, the Rices diverted at least $1 million in cash and check co-payments to Sandhills Orthopaedic directly into their personal bank accounts.

James and Susan Rice will be sentenced at a later date. They face a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison for each count of conspiracy, tax evasion and employment tax fraud, and they face an additional one year in prison for each count of failing to file individual and corporate tax returns. The Rices are further subject to additional monetary penalties, supervised release and restitution.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Sandra J. Hairston for the Middle District of North Carolina made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Alexander Effendi and Michael Jones and paralegal Kim Better of the Tax Division are prosecuting this case.

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

The Department of Justice announced today that New Jersey Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) has agreed to enter into a settlement and pay $50,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) by obtaining unlawful court judgments against two military servicemembers who co-signed student loans.

Under the proposed consent decree, which was filed today in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey and must still be approved by the Court, HESAA will pay $15,000 each to two servicemembers who had default judgments entered against them, and will pay a civil penalty of $20,000 to the United States. The consent decree also requires HESAA to provide SCRA training to its employees and outside counsel and develop new policies and procedures consistent with the SCRA. Since the United States opened its investigation, HESAA has worked cooperatively to revise its policies, procedures and training to comply with the SCRA and the terms of the consent decree.

“Congress enacted the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to protect those who risk their lives serving our nation,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “This settlement clearly sends the message that the Department of Justice will continue enforcing the Act vigorously to protect servicemembers and to ensure that all covered industries, including providers of student loans, comply fully with the law.”

“Through this settlement, we honor the brave members of our armed services by ensuring that their rights are protected when called to duty,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig for the District of New Jersey. “This office remains steadfast in its commitment to protect the rights of servicemembers in New Jersey. We thank HESAA for its cooperation with our investigation and HESAA’s acknowledgement that protecting the rights of servicemembers under the SCRA is of significant public importance.”

The Civil Rights Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey launched its investigation after Coast Guard legal assistance attorneys in Portsmouth, Virginia, reported that HESAA had obtained a default judgment in 2019 against a Coast Guard Petty Officer who had co-signed for two student loans. The SCRA protects servicemembers from default judgments in circumstances in which, because of their military service, they may be unable to appear in court and defend themselves. Under the SCRA, if a lender files a civil lawsuit against a borrower and then seeks a default judgment, the lender must notify the court of the borrower’s military status.  If the borrower is in military service, the court cannot enter judgment until it appoints an attorney to represent the borrower, and the court must, in most circumstances, postpone the proceedings for at least 90 days.

In a complaint filed in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, the U.S. Attorney’s Office alleged that HESAA obtained default judgments against two SCRA-protected servicemembers by failing to disclose their military service and filing affidavits that inaccurately stated that they were not in the military. Lenders can verify an individual’s military status by searching the Defense Manpower Data Center’s free publicly available website (DMDC database) or by reviewing their files to see if there are applications, military leave and earnings statements, or military orders indicating military status. After conducting DMDC database searches that confirmed that the servicemembers were in military service, HESAA, through its outside counsel, nevertheless filed affidavits in state court that inaccurately stated that the servicemembers were not in military service.

This matter was handled jointly by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey and the Civil Rights Division’s Housing and Civil Enforcement Section. Since 2011, the department has obtained over $474 million in monetary relief for over 120,000 servicemembers through its enforcement of the SCRA. For more information about the department’s SCRA enforcement efforts, please visit www.servicemembers.gov.

Servicemembers and their dependents who believe that their rights under the SCRA have been violated should contact the nearest Armed Forces Legal Assistance Program Office. Office locations may be found at http://legalassistance.law.af.mil.

Individuals who believe their civil rights have been violated in the District of New Jersey may also file a complaint with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey at:  http://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/civil-rights-enforcement/complaint or may call the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Civil Rights Complaint Hotline at (855) 281-3339.

The United States is represented by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Victor Williamson of the U.S. Attorney’s Civil Rights Unit, Civil Division, in consultation with the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section.

The United States has filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas seeking to bar a Beaumont, Texas, tax return preparer from owning or operating a tax return preparation business and preparing federal income tax returns for others.

The civil complaint filed against Michelle Denise Johnston alleges that, since at least 2011, she has operated a tax preparation business in Beaumont under the name “Allen and Johnston Tax Service.” According to the complaint, Johnston prepared and filed tax returns that understated her customers’ federal income tax liabilities by (1) wholly fabricating businesses and related business expenses; (2) improperly inflating such expenses for existing businesses; and (3) fabricating or improperly inflating itemized deductions for casualty losses and mortgage interest deductions.

The complaint further alleges that Johnston has engaged in a “refund-skimming” scheme that “double dips” her tax preparation fees. According to the complaint, customers directly paid Johnston preparation fees ranging from $200 to $500, based on preparation of a “tentative income tax return” that showed a modest refund. The complaint alleges that Johnston then took the tentative return and inflated and/or fabricated deductions, credits and losses to create a larger tax refund. According to the complaint, Johnston filed the fabricated return with the IRS, which deposited the inflated refund with a third-party vendor. The complaint alleges that Johnston then caused the vendor to pay her customer the amount shown on the tentative return and deducted a second preparation fee from the remaining funds. According to the complaint, the scheme occurred unbeknownst to her customers because Johnston only provided them with either an incomplete copy of the return or with a copy of the return that was different from that filed with the IRS.

According to the complaint, Johnston prepared over 3,100 tax returns in aggregate for tax years 2018 through 2020. As a result, the complaint alleges, Johnston has cost the United States significant losses of tax revenue. The complaint further alleges that Johnston harmed her customers, who may be liable for repayment of refunds claimed in their names, plus penalties and interest.

Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. Hubbert of the Justice Department’s Tax Division made the announcement.

Return preparer fraud is one of the IRS’ Dirty Dozen Tax Scams, and taxpayers seeking a return preparer should remain vigilant. (More information can also be found here.) The IRS has information on its website for choosing a tax preparer, has launched a free directory of federal tax preparers and offers information on how to avoid “ghost” tax preparers, whose refusal to sign a return should be a red flag to taxpayers. The IRS also has a list of important reminders for taxpayers who are about to file their 2020 tax returns, including how to prepare for a smooth filing process.

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

The Department of Justice announced today that it has entered into agreements to distribute $19.25 million to the United Nations for the purchase and distribution of COVID-19 vaccines and $6.35 million to Medical Care Development International (MCDI) for the purchase and distribution of medicines and medical supplies throughout Equatorial Guinea as part of the implementation of a civil forfeiture settlement resolving the disposition of certain assets previously allegedly purchased by the current First Vice President of Equatorial Guinea Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue (Obiang Mangue) with the proceeds of corruption. 

In the civil forfeiture matter United States v. One Michael Jackson Signed Thriller Jacket, No. 2:11-CV-03582 in the Central District of California, and related cases, the United States alleged that Obiang Mangue, who in 2011 was Minister of Agriculture and Forestry and received an official government salary of less than $100,000, used his position and influence to amass more than $300 million worth of assets through corruption and money laundering, in violation of both U.S. and Equatoguinean law.

Pursuant to the terms of a 2014 settlement agreement, Obiang Mangue was required to sell a Malibu, California, mansion that he purchased for $30 million, a Ferrari automobile and various items of Michael Jackson memorabilia, and to contribute $1 million representing the value of other property. As provided in the agreement, $10.3 million of these settlement funds were to be forfeited to the United States and the remaining settlement funds would be distributed to a charity or other organization for the benefit of the people of Equatorial Guinea. The Department of Justice has committed to returning the forfeited funds for the benefit of the people of Equatorial Guinea.

“Wherever possible, Kleptocrats will not be allowed to retain the benefits of corruption,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The department’s tenacity in ensuring that these funds be returned for the benefit of the people of Equatorial Guinea demonstrates our commitment to making sure a nation’s resources are used to benefit the people of that nation and are not siphoned off inappropriately.”

As set forth in a donor agreement with the United Nations, the United Nations will use $19.25 million in settlement funds to purchase, store, distribute and administer COVID-19 vaccines to at least 600,000 people in Equatorial Guinea. In addition, MCDI, a charitable organization in Silver Spring, Maryland, with an established track record of administering programs in Equatorial Guinea, will receive $6.35 million to manage the purchase, storage, distribution and delivery of additional medicines and medical supplies throughout Equatorial Guinea.

Chief Gene Patton of Program Operations, and Deputy Chief Adam J. Schwartz of the International Unit of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section handled the resolution of this matter.