District Not Recorded

The Department of Justice today announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with Around the Clock Dispatch Inc., a freight and delivery services company in Queens Village, New York.

The settlement resolves the department’s claim that Around the Clock violated the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) by retaliating against a worker because he asked for the department’s help in addressing his concerns about an immigration-related employment practice.   

The department initiated its investigation after the worker filed a charge, and determined that Around the Clock suspended the worker for three days without pay because he called the Civil Rights Division’s Immigrant and Employee Rights Section (IER) to ask for help addressing a concern about the company’s process for verifying his work authorization. IER’s hotline program offers information and assistance to workers and employers to prevent discrimination and to resolve potential immigration-related employment disputes informally, when workers request such intervention. The INA prohibits retaliation and intimidation against individuals who oppose what they reasonably believe are violations of the law that IER enforces, including by calling IER’s hotline. Individuals who file a charge with IER, cooperate with an IER investigation, or otherwise assert their own or others’ rights are also protected under this law.

“Workers should not face negative consequences for raising concerns about actions that may violate the Immigration and Nationality Act’s anti-discrimination provision,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We encourage workers and employers to contact the Immigrant and Employee Rights Section’s hotline for information on their rights and responsibilities, to help resolve disputes at the earliest opportunity possible. Protecting those who contact the hotline from retaliation is critical to ensuring its success.”

Under the settlement, Around the Clock will pay $3,600 in civil penalties to the United States and nearly $900 in back pay to the affected individual. The settlement also requires Around the Clock to train employees on the requirements of the INA’s anti-discrimination provision and be subject to departmental monitoring and reporting requirements. 

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

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

WASHINGTON – El Departamento de Justicia anunció hoy que ha llegado a un acuerdo conciliatorio con Around the Clock Dispatch Inc., una compañía de servicios de flete y reparto en Queens Village, New York. La conciliación resuelve la acusación del Departamento de que Around the Clock vulneró la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la ley de Ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad («INA», por sus siglas en inglés) al tomar represalias contra un trabajador porque pidió la ayuda del Departamento para abordar sus preocupaciones acerca de una práctica de empleo relacionada con la inmigración.  

El Departamento inició su investigación después de que el trabajador presentó una denuncia y determinó que Around the Clock suspendió al trabajador por tres días sin sueldo porque él había llamado a la Sección de Derechos Civiles de la Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados («IER», por sus siglas en inglés) para pedir ayuda para abordar una preocupación relacionada con el proceso que la compañía usa para verificar su autorización para trabajar. El programa de líneas directas de la IER ofrece información y ayuda a trabajadores y empleadores para prevenir la discriminación y resolver, de manera informal, posibles controversias laborales relacionadas con la inmigración, en el caso de que un trabajador pida tal intervención. La INA prohíbe la intimidación o la toma de represalias contra individuos que se oponen a lo que ellos creen, razonablemente, que son infracciones de la ley que la IER hace cumplir, incluyendo llamar a la línea directa de la IER. Las personas que presentan una denuncia ante la IER, cooperan con una investigación de la IER o que de otra forma hacen valer sus derechos o los de otras personas también están protegidos al amparo de esta ley.

«Los trabajadores no deben enfrentarse a consecuencias negativas por comentar sus preocupaciones acerca de medidas que podrían constituir una vulneración de la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la ley de Inmigración y Nacionalidad», afirmó Kristen Clarke, la Fiscal General Auxiliar de la División de Derechos Civiles del Departamento de Justicia. «Animamos a los trabajadores y empleadores a comunicarse con la línea directa de la Sección de Derechos de Inmigrantes y Empleados para información sobre sus derechos y responsabilidades, para ayudar a resolver controversias lo más antes posible. La protección de aquellos que se comunican con la línea directa por motivos relacionados con represalias es esencial para garantizar su éxito».

Conforme la conciliación, Around the Clock pagará una sanción civil de 3.600 $ a los Estados Unidos y casi 900 $ por concepto de pagos retroactivos al individuo afectado. Por otra parte, la conciliación requiere que Around the Clock capacite sus empleados en cuanto a los requisitos de la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA y que se someta a los requisitos de supervisión y declaración del Departamento. 

La IER, una sección que forma parte de la División de Derechos Civiles, es responsable de hacer cumplir la disposición antidiscriminatoria de la INA. La ley prohíbe la discriminación por motivos de estatus migratorio o de ciudadanía o bien por la nacionalidad de origen en los procesos de contratación, despido o reclutamiento o recomendación por comisión; prácticas documentales injustas y represalias e intimidación. 

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

Note: The defendants in this case, DaVita Inc. and Kent Thiry, were acquitted by a jury of the charges alleged in the indictment described in the press release below.

A federal grand jury in Denver returned a two-count indictment charging DaVita Inc. and its former CEO, Kent Thiry, for conspiring with competing employers not to solicit certain employees. DaVita owns and operates outpatient medical care centers across the country, focusing on dialysis and kidney care. These charges are the result of the Antitrust Division’s ongoing investigation into employee allocation agreements in the health care industry. DaVita’s co-conspirator Surgical Care Affiliates LLC and its related entity (collectively SCA) were charged in January, and that case is pending in the Northern District of Texas.  

The indictment alleges that DaVita and Thiry both participated in two separate conspiracies to suppress competition for the services of certain employees. Count One charges DaVita and Thiry for conspiring with SCA to allocate senior-level employees by agreeing not to solicit each other’s senior-level employees from as early as February 2012 until as late as July 2017. Count Two charges DaVita and Thiry for conspiring with another health care company from as early as April 2017 until as late as June 2019 to allocate employees by agreeing that the other health care company would not solicit DaVita’s employees. 

“Those who conspire to deprive workers of free-market opportunities and mobility are committing serious crimes that we will prosecute to the full extent of the law,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “We are grateful for our partnership with the FBI and our shared commitment to rooting out illegal collusion targeting labor markets.” 

“These charges show a disturbing pattern of behavior among health care company executives to conspire to limit the opportunities of workers,” said Assistant Director in Charge Steven M. D’Antuono of the FBI’s Washington Field Office. “The FBI is dedicated to working with our partners to hold those accountable who would engage in labor market collusion to the detriment of their employees.”

DaVita and Thiry are charged with two counts of violating the Sherman Act. The defendants are scheduled for their initial court appearance on July 20 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kristen L. Mix of the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. If convicted, DaVita faces a maximum penalty of a $100 million fine per count, and Thiry faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine per count. The maximum fine may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by victims if either amount is greater than the statutory maximum. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Today’s announcement is the result of an ongoing federal investigation being conducted by the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal II Section and the Washington Field Office of the FBI. 

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.

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

The Department of Justice announced today that it will require Danfoss A/S (Danfoss) and Eaton Corporation Plc (Eaton) to divest assets from both Danfoss’s and Eaton’s orbital motor and hydraulic steering unit manufacturing businesses in order to proceed with their proposed asset purchase agreement. Without these divestitures, the transaction would substantially lessen competition in the design, manufacture, and sale of orbital motors and hydraulic steering units used in agricultural, industrial and construction equipment in the United States.

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

“Orbital motors and hydraulic steering units are essential components in equipment used in the agricultural, industrial and construction industries,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The transaction, as originally proposed, would have led to higher prices and lower quality for original equipment manufacturers in these industries that are vital to the American economy. The remedy preserves competition in the manufacture and sale of these products for the benefit of equipment manufacturers and consumers.” 

According to the complaint, Danfoss and Eaton are the two largest suppliers of orbital motors used for mobile off-road equipment in the United States. Orbital motors are used to propel and power the working attachments in equipment like skid steer loaders, harvesters and street sweepers. The complaint also alleges that Danfoss and Eaton are the two largest suppliers of hydraulic steering units that help turn a vehicle’s wheels using hydraulic fluid. According to the complaint, absent a divestiture, the proposed transaction between Danfoss and Eaton would lead to higher prices, decreased quality of delivery and service, and diminished innovation.

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, the parties must divest three Danfoss orbital motor and hydraulic steering unit facilities located in Hopkinsville, Kentucky; Parchim, Germany; and Wroclaw, Poland, and two orbital motor production lines and one hydraulic steering unit production line from Eaton facilities located in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and Eden Prairie, Minnesota, to Interpump Group S.p.A. (Interpump) or an alternate acquirer approved by the United States. Interpump is a global, established provider of cylinders, pumps and valves with operations in North America, Europe, South America, and Asia. 

The department expressed thanks to its enforcement partners in the European Commission for their close and constructive collaboration on this matter, which enabled a thorough investigation and resulted in remedies that will preserve competition in the United States and Europe. 

Danfoss A/S, a global corporation headquartered in Nordborg, Denmark, manufactures components and engineering technologies, among other products, for hydraulics for off-road machinery through its Power Solutions division. Danfoss’s Power Solutions division had sales of approximately €6.3 billion in 2019. 

Eaton Corporation Plc, a global corporation headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, manufactures hydraulic motors, power units, valves and steering units through its subsidiary’s Power & Motion Controls Division. Eaton’s Power & Motion Controls Division had sales of approximately $2.2 billion in 2019.

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 New York federal court unsealed an indictment today charging four Iranian nationals with conspiracies related to kidnapping, sanctions violations, bank and wire fraud, and money laundering. A co-conspirator and California resident, also of Iran, faces additional structuring charges.

According to court documents, Alireza Shavaroghi Farahani, aka Vezerat Salimi and Haj Ali, 50; Mahmoud Khazein, 42; Kiya Sadeghi, 35; and Omid Noori, 45, all of Iran, conspired to kidnap a Brooklyn journalist, author and human rights activist for mobilizing public opinion in Iran and around the world to bring about changes to the regime’s laws and practices. Niloufar Bahadorifar, aka Nellie Bahadorifar, 46, originally of Iran and currently residing in California, is alleged to have provided financial services that supported the plot.

“Every person in the United States must be free from harassment, threats and physical harm by foreign powers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Mark J. Lesko for the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Through this indictment, we bring to light one such pernicious plot to harm an American citizen who was exercising their First Amendment rights, and we commit ourselves to bring the defendants to justice.”

“As alleged, four of the defendants monitored and planned to kidnap a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin who has been critical of the regime’s autocracy, and to forcibly take their intended victim to Iran, where the victim’s fate would have been uncertain at best,” said U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss for the Southern District of New York. “Among this country’s most cherished freedoms is the right to speak one’s mind without fear of government reprisal. A U.S. citizen living in the United States must be able to advocate for human rights without being targeted by foreign intelligence operatives. Thanks to the FBI’s exposure of their alleged scheme, these defendants have failed to silence criticism by forcible abduction.”

“As alleged in this indictment, the government of Iran directed a number of state actors to plot to kidnap a U.S.-based journalist and American citizen, and to conduct surveillance on U.S. soil - all with the intention to lure our citizen back to Iran as retaliation for their freedom of expression,” said Assistant Director Alan E. Kohler Jr. of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division. “We will use all the tools at our disposal to aggressively investigate foreign activities by operatives who conspire to kidnap a U.S. citizen just because the government of Iran didn’t approve of the victim’s criticism of the regime.”

According to the indictment, Farahani is an Iranian intelligence official who resides in Iran. Khazein, Sadeghi and Noori are Iranian intelligence assets who also reside in Iran and work under Farahani. Since at least June 2020, Farahani and his intelligence network have plotted to kidnap a U.S. citizen of Iranian origin (Victim-1) from within the United States in furtherance of the government of Iran’s efforts to silence Victim-1’s criticisms of the regime. Victim-1 is an author and journalist who has publicized the government of Iran’s human rights abuses.

Prior to the kidnapping plot, the government of Iran attempted to lure Victim-1 to a third country in order to capture Victim-1 for rendition to Iran. In approximately 2018, Iranian government officials attempted to induce relatives of Victim-1, who reside in Iran, to invite the victim to travel to a third country for the apparent purpose of having Victim-1 arrested or detained and transported to Iran for imprisonment. Victim-1’s relatives did not accept the offer. An electronic device used by Farahani contains, among other things, a photo of Victim-1 alongside photos of two other individuals, both of whom were lured from third countries and captured by Iranian intelligence, with one later executed and the other imprisoned in Iran, and a caption in Farsi that reads: “gradually the gathering gets bigger... are you coming, or should we come for you?”

On multiple occasions in 2020 and 2021, as part of the plot to kidnap Victim-1, Farahani and his network procured the services of private investigators to surveil, photograph and video record Victim-1 and Victim-1’s household members in Brooklyn. Farahani’s network procured days’ worth of surveillance at Victim-1’s home and the surrounding area, videos and photographs of the victim’s family and associates, surveillance of the victim’s residence, and the installation of and access to a live high-definition video feed of Victim-1’s home. The network repeatedly insisted on high-quality photographs and video recordings of Victim-1 and Victim-1’s household members; a large volume of content; pictures of visitors and objects around the house; and depictions of Victim-1’s body language. The network procured the surveillance by misrepresenting their identities and the purpose of the surveillance to the investigators, and laundered money into the United States from Iran to pay for the surveillance. Sadeghi acted as the network’s primary point of contact with private investigators while Noori facilitated payment to the investigators in furtherance of the plot.

As part of the kidnapping plot, the Farahani-led intelligence network also researched methods of transporting Victim-1 out of the United States for rendition to Iran. Sadeghi, for example, researched a service offering military-style speedboats for self-operated maritime evacuation out of New York City, and maritime travel from New York to Venezuela, a country whose de facto government has friendly relations with Iran. Khazein researched travel routes from Victim-1’s residence to a waterfront neighborhood in Brooklyn; the location of Victim-1’s residence relative to Venezuela; and the location of Victim-1’s residence relative to Tehran.   

The network that Farahani directs has also targeted victims in other countries, including victims in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United Arab Emirates, and has worked to procure similar surveillance of those victims.

As alleged, Bahadorifar provided financial and other services from the United States to Iranian residents and entities, including to Khazein, since approximately 2015. Bahadorifar facilitated access to the U.S. financial system and institutions through the use of card accounts and offered to manage business interests in the United States on Khazein’s behalf. Among other things, Bahadorifar caused a payment to be made to a private investigator for surveillance of Victim-1 on Khazein’s behalf. While Bahadorifar is not charged with participating in the kidnapping conspiracy, she is alleged to have provided financial services that supported the plot and is charged with conspiring to violate sanctions against Iran, commit bank and wire fraud, and commit money laundering. Bahadorifar is also charged with structuring cash deposits totaling more than approximately $445,000.

Farahani, Khazein, Sadeghi and Noori are each charged with: (1) conspiring to kidnap, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison; (2) conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and sanctions against the government of Iran, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; (3) conspiring to commit bank and wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison; and (4) conspiring to launder money, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Bahadorifar is charged with counts two, three and four, and is further charged with structuring, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI’s New York Field Office, Counterintelligence-Cyber Division and Iran Threat Task Force are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Nathan Swinton of the Justice Department’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael D. Lockard, Jacob H. Gutwillig and Matthew J.C. Hellman of the Southern District of New York 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 Newport News, Virginia, convicted Karl Burden-El Bey (aka Carl L. Burden) Friday of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns, theft of government funds and failing to file federal income tax returns.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Burden-El Bey, of Hampton, prepared false tax returns for clients from at least 2013 through 2019. On his clients’ returns, Burden-El Bey claimed false dependents, residential energy credits, gifts to charity, deductions, and child and dependent care expenses in order to inflate refunds obtained from the IRS. Burden-El Bey also stole $5,000 by directing a portion of his client’s refund into his personal bank account. As to his own taxes, Burden-El Bey did not file individual  tax returns for 2013 through 2017 with the IRS, despite being legally obligated to do so.

Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 7 before U.S. District Judge David J. Novak.

Burden-El Bey faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for theft of government funds, three years in prison for each count of aiding and assisting in the preparation of a false tax return, and one year in prison for each count of failing to file a tax return. He also faces substantial monetary penalties, supervised release and restitution at sentencing.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Department of Justice’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Raj Parekh of the Eastern District of Virginia made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Grace Albinson and Francesca Bartolomey of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Samuels and Lisa McKeel of the Eastern District of Virginia prosecuted this case.

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

Today, the U.S. Department of Justice, on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), filed a complaint in federal court in the U.S. Virgin Islands against Limetree Bay Terminals LLC and Limetree Bay Refining LLC (jointly Limetree Bay) alleging that the companies’ St. Croix petroleum refinery presents an imminent and substantial danger to public health and the environment. In a stipulation filed simultaneously with the complaint that acknowledges that the refinery is not currently operating and that Limetree Bay does not intend to restart the refinery at the present time, Limetree Bay has agreed to a number of requirements, including the following:

• Complete all corrective measures that are necessary to eliminate any imminent and substantial endangerment to public health or welfare or the environment posed by the refinery or refinery process units before the refinery or any refinery process unit restarts;
• Notify the United States and the court no fewer than 90 days before restarting the refinery or any refinery process unit;
• Install hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and sulfur dioxide (S02) monitors at nine monitoring sites prior to restart of the refinery or any refinery process unit; and
• Submit a plan for EPA approval to purge hydrocarbons from refinery process units and other equipment at the refinery as part of the process of indefinite shutdown. The hydrocarbon purging plan will include the operation of ambient air monitoring.

“Today’s action shows the Department of Justice’s commitment to enforcing the Clean Air Act and protecting American communities from harmful air pollution,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jean E. Williams of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. 

“EPA is committed to ensuring that Limetree Bay’s activities and operations comply with laws that protect public health,” said Acting Regional Administrator Walter Mugdan for the EPA. “Today’s action and stipulation further strengthen our work to protect communities near this refinery by securing a binding commitment from the company that any restart of operations or initiation of long-term shutdown activities, such as purging gases, must receive EPA’s prior approval. These actions advance EPA’s commitment to environmental justice and to protect clean air for those living in vulnerable and overburdened communities.”

Since February of this year, the refinery experienced multiple major incidents resulting in significant air pollutant and oil releases. Many residents in the surrounding St. Croix community reported becoming sickened by some of the releases.

Following four incidents at the refinery, EPA issued an administrative order (EPA Order) to Limetree Bay Terminals LLC and Limetree Bay Refining LLC on May 14.  The EPA Order issued under Section 303 of the Clean Air Act required Limetree Bay to cease refinery operations; conduct an environmental compliance audit and process area audits of the refinery’s flare system, delayed coking unit, and sulfur recovery unit; and submit a corrective measures plan to address the audits’ findings. 

Under Section 303 of the Clean Air Act, the EPA Order remains effective for 60 days unless the United States files a complaint seeking longer-term relief. By filing today’s complaint, the EPA order is automatically extended by 14 days. The complaint seeks an injunction requiring Limetree Bay to comply with the requirements of the EPA order, to take all measures necessary to eliminate the imminent and substantial endangerment before restarting refinery operations including complying with the corrective measures plan, and other appropriate relief.

Members of the public can help protect our environment by identifying and reporting environmental violations. Learn more here: https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/report-environmental-violation-general-information.

The owner of a Brooklyn construction business, AD Custom Interiors Inc., pleaded guilty on July 9 to not paying payroll taxes to the IRS.

According to court documents, as the sole owner and operator of AD Custom, Anthony Riccio had a duty to truthfully account for and pay over to the IRS payroll taxes owed by his employees. From approximately January 2011 through January 2016, Riccio cashed over $3.1 million in checks paid to AD Custom. Riccio used some of that cash to pay wages to his employees. Riccio concealed these cash payments from AD Custom’s return preparer, causing the accountant to prepare employment tax returns that underreported wages and payroll taxes owed. Over five years, Riccio failed to pay $255,433 in federal payroll taxes, including income, Social Security and Medicare taxes, owed by AD Custom and its employees.

Riccio is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 21 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. Riccio 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 made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Shawn T. Noud and Mark W. Kotila of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

Nebraska Railcar Cleaning Services LLC (NRCS), its president and owner, Steven Michael Braithwaite, and its vice president and co-owner, Adam Thomas Braithwaite, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Omaha to charges stemming from an investigation into a 2015 fatal railcar explosion that killed two workers. The charges include conspiracy, violating worker safety standards resulting in worker deaths, violating the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and submitting false documents to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

“The Department of Justice is dedicated to protecting the health and safety of American workers and to protecting our environment,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jean E. Williams of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The defendants in this case put their employees at risk and falsified documents to evade worker safety requirements. Tragically, two of their employees died while working with hazardous waste under unsafe conditions. Guided by its managers, NRCS failed to appropriately dispose of hazardous wastes removed during the cleaning process — wastes that are ignitable and can cause human cancer and other health effects.  Today’s guilty pleas show that the Department of Justice will prosecute those who thwart federal laws created to protect American workers and the environment.”

“Worker safety standards and environmental regulations are not just meaningless rules made up by faceless bureaucrats,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jan Sharp of the District of Nebraska. “They address real-world safety issues, and failure to abide by them can cost lives. Today’s guilty pleas emphasize the grave consequences of cutting corners, not only for the workers who are meant to be protected, but also for the employers who fail to live up to their responsibilities.”

“The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has regulations that companies must follow to ensure worker safety,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Steven Grell of the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Dallas Region. “Steven and Adam Braithwaite disregarded OSHA regulations and provided false documentation to OSHA to make it appear as if all safety requirements were being followed, when in fact, they were not. Their lack of adherence to OSHA regulations and indifference to their employees’ safety resulted in tragic consequences which impacted several families. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners and OSHA to hold accountable those who jeopardize workers ’ safety and obstruct DOL agencies in carrying out their important missions.” 

“The defendants in this case ignored health and safety protocols and knowingly put their employees and the public at risk by disregarding federal regulations,” said Acting Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield for the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Today’s guilty pleas send a clear message that individuals who intentionally violate these laws will be held accountable.”

NRCS was in the business of cleaning railcars, including rail tanker cars. Tanker car cleaning often involved NRCS sending workers inside the cars’ tanks to scrape and remove various commodities, including gasoline, ethanol, petroleum by-products, pesticides, herbicides and food-grade products.

According to court documents, NRCS failed to implement worker safety standards and then tried to cover that up during an inspection by OSHA. In addition, the company mishandled hazardous wastes removed from rail tanker cars during the cleaning process. On April 14, 2015, two NRCS workers who were sent into a tanker car containing severely flammable residue were killed and another injured when the contents of the railcar they were cleaning ignited and exploded.

On various occasions prior to the explosion, OSHA officials conducted regulatory inspections during which they notified the principals of NRCS that NRCS was in violation of OSHA safety regulations concerning confined space entries. Rail tanker cars are “confined spaces” under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. After an inspection of NRCS, Steven Braithwaite entered into a written agreement on Feb. 5, 2015, where he represented that NRCS had been testing for benzene since July 2014. After OSHA returned to NRCS in March 2015 to conduct a follow-up inspection and was turned away by Steven Braithwaite, Adam Braithwaite submitted falsified documents to OSHA purporting to show that NRCS had been purchasing equipment to test the contents of railcars for benzene and had taken other required safety precautions. Adam Braithwaite also falsely testified under oath in an OSHA hearing that NRCS had been purchasing the benzene testing equipment.

Meanwhile, NRCS had been engaged to clean the railcar that ultimately exploded. On or about Jan. 27, 2015, NRCS received an inquiry from one of its customers about receiving and cleaning product residue from a rail tanker car. The inquiry included a Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for the product in the railcar, describing it as “natural gasoline,” also known as “petrol, casing head gasoline, CS ’s.” The SDS also stated that the flammability rating was “severe” at class “4” (the highest rating), that the natural gasoline would ignite at zero degrees Fahrenheit, and that it contained benzene, a “cancer hazard.” NRCS responded that it could handle the material in the railcar.

The tanker car was not tested for benzene levels. Nonetheless, NRCS sent two of its employees into the tanker car. Continuous monitoring for explosive levels of gases was not conducted. The two employees sent into tanker car began removing the remaining contents, which were hazardous for toxicity (benzene) and ignitability. On April 14, 2015, approximately one hour after the two employees were sent into the tanker car, its contents ignited and exploded, killing those two employees and injuring a third.

Stephen Michael Braithwaite was the President and majority owner of NRCS and was responsible for all phases of the business, including both environmental and worker safety issues. He pleaded guilty to two counts of violating worker safety standards that resulted in the workers’ deaths, and knowingly endangering others by violating RCRA. Adam Thomas Braithwaite was the Vice President and a minority owner of NRCS and also handled both environmental and worker safety issues, among others. He also pleaded guilty to two counts of violating worker safety standards that resulted in the workers’ deaths, to two counts of falsification of records in a federal investigation, and to committing perjury.  NRCS pleaded guilty to all 21 of the counts it was charged with in the indictment.

The defendants are scheduled to be sentenced on Oct.25. Steven Braithwaite faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and a fine of the greater of $750,000 or twice the gain or profit caused by the offense. Adam Braithwaite faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of the greater of $1,250,000 or twice the gain or profit caused by the offense and NRCS faces a maximum penalty of five years’ probation and a fine of the greater of $9,500,000 or twice the gain or profit caused by the offense. A federal district court judge will determine the sentences after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case was investigated by U.S. EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General. Senior Counsel Krishna S. Dighe of the Department of Justice, Environmental Crimes Section, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald J. Kleine of the District of Nebraska are prosecuting the case.

A Long Island woman pleaded guilty today to participating in a scheme to mail fraudulent prize notices that led recipients, many of whom were elderly and vulnerable, to believe that they could claim large cash prizes in exchange for a modest fee. None of the victims who submitted fees, which in total exceeded $30 million, received a substantial cash prize.

According to court documents, Lorraine Chalavoutis, 64, of Greenlawn, New York, conspired to mail fraudulent prize notices to thousands of victims throughout the United States between December 2010 and July 2016. The mailings appeared to be personally addressed to thousands of individuals whose names were on consumer lists obtained by Chalavoutis and her primary co-conspirators, Shaun Sullivan and Tully Lovisa. Chalavoutis created various shell companies for the purported senders of the mailings, and hid her co-conspirators’ involvement in the business by using straw owners. Lovisa and Sullivan both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and are awaiting sentencing. In separate cases, several other defendants have also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud in connection with the scheme.

“Those who knowingly facilitate fraud schemes, including individuals who play administrative roles in setting up and maintaining the criminal operations, bear responsibility for the harm caused to victims,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting elderly and vulnerable Americans and to prosecuting individuals who perpetrate and knowingly enable such schemes.”

“With today’s plea, Chalavoutis has admitted her role in a nefarious and fraudulent scheme to enrich herself by tricking elderly and vulnerable victims into believing they had won a cash prize that they could collect after paying her modest fees,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis for the Eastern District of New York. “Protecting the community from those who commit fraud to deliberately prey on the false hopes of the vulnerable remains a priority of this office and the Department of Justice.”

“Today’s plea is an example of the coordinated efforts of law enforcement to bring those to justice who prey on vulnerable adults through the distribution of bogus solicitations, luring the unsuspecting ‘prize winner’ to send money in an effort to steal not only their money, but in many cases their independence,” said Inspector-in-Charge Philip R. Bartlett of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, New York Division.

Chalavoutis pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud before U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 18, 2022, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated the case. Trial Attorneys Daniel Zytnick and Timothy Finley of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles P. Kelly of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York are prosecuting the case.

For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch, visit its website at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. For more information about the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny.

The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) have signed the first interagency Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster cooperation and communication between the agencies to enhance competition in the maritime industry. Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers and FMC Chairman Daniel Maffei signed the MOU between the Antitrust Division and the FMC effective this afternoon following Friday’s announcement of the Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy.      

“Collaboration between the Antitrust Division and the FMC is important to ensuring healthy competition in the maritime industry,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Powers. “Our partnership with the FMC is one of the many ways in which the Antitrust Division is prepared to play its role in achieving the competition objectives of the President’s Competition Executive Order.”  

“The Federal Maritime Commission has an important enforcement role as an economic regulator of a vital industry,” said Chairman Maffei. “As such, we will continually assess how the agency can improve its capacity to protect the integrity of the marketplace. This memorandum between the Commission and the Department of Justice supplements and strengthens the FMC’s ability to detect, address, and pursue violations of the law or anticompetitive behavior by those we regulate.”

Key provisions of the MOU facilitate communication and cooperation between the agencies. In particular, the MOU establishes a framework for the Antitrust Division and the FMC to continue regular discussions and review law enforcement and regulatory matters affecting competition in the maritime industry. The MOU includes provisions to establish periodic meetings among the respective agencies’ officials. The MOU also provides for the exchange of information and expertise that may be relevant and useful to the agencies’ oversight and enforcement responsibilities, as appropriate and consistent with applicable legal and confidentiality restrictions.

The Justice Department announced today that it has entered into a proposed consent decree to settle a voting rights lawsuit with the Board of Elections of Oneida County, New York.

The proposed consent decree was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York in conjunction with a lawsuit brought by the Justice Department. The Justice Department’s complaint alleges that, before the November 2020 federal general election, the Oneida County Board of Elections failed to process approximately 2,400 timely-submitted voter registration applications completed through state motor vehicle offices and failed to ensure that voter registration applicants received timely notice of the disposition of their applications, in violation of Section 8 of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA). The complaint also alleges that the State violated Section 302 of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) by summarily rejecting nearly 1,800 provisional ballots cast by Oneida County voters in the November 2020 federal election without verifying the voters’ eligibility and without counting those provisional ballots cast by eligible voters.

The Justice Department gave notice to the Oneida County Board of Elections of its intent to bring suit under the NVRA and HAVA on March 23, and the parties worked collaboratively to achieve this agreement. The parties’ consent decree, which must still be approved by the court, provides that the Oneida County Board of Elections will develop and implement uniform and nondiscriminatory policies and procedures to ensure that election officials review and process all timely submitted voter registration applications in accordance with the NVRA. In addition, the board will train all poll officials and other election personnel regarding the provisional balloting requirements of HAVA. Finally, the board will provide periodic reports to the Justice Department regarding compliance with the proposed consent decree.

“We will continue using critical federal voting rights laws to help ensure that eligible voters enjoy access to the ballot box,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The National Voter Registration Act requires states to ensure that voter registration applications submitted before the deadline for federal elections are timely processed, and that qualified voters are promptly included on voter rolls for federal elections. The Help America Voter Act ensures that registered voters who have been left off voting lists can cast provisional ballots that will be promptly verified and counted if the voters are found to be eligible. I am pleased that the Oneida County Board of Elections has worked with the Department of Justice and agreed to measures that will protect these vital rights and establish safeguards to ensure compliance with the law in future federal elections.”

“We join the Civil Rights Division in bringing this important lawsuit under the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act, and appreciate that Oneida County has worked with the Justice Department to ensure that all Oneida County residents enjoy the voting rights and protections afforded to them,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon of the Northern District of New York.

More information about the National Voter Registration Act, the Help America Vote Act and other federal voting rights laws is available on the Department of Justice website at https:www.justice.gov/crt/voting-section.

The U.S. Department of Justice today released the following statement from spokesman Anthony Coley on department efforts to provide law enforcement assistance to the people and Government of Haiti:

“At the request of the Haitian government, the Department of Justice, along with its U.S. government partners, is assisting the Haitian National Police in the investigation of the assassination of Haitian President Jovenel Moïse. 

“An initial assessment has been conducted in Haiti by senior U.S. officials. The department will continue to support the Haitian government in its review of the facts and circumstances surrounding this heinous attack.

“The department will also investigate whether there were any violations of U.S. criminal law in connection with this matter.”

The Florida Department of Children and Families (FDCF) has agreed to pay to the United States $17,500,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act in its administration of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Until 2008, SNAP was known as the Food Stamp Program. 

“SNAP provides important benefits to help families in need,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “This settlement is an example of the department’s commitment to ensuring that taxpayer funds are spent appropriately so that the public can have confidence in the integrity of vital programs like SNAP.” 

“While it is shocking these claims where submitted by the Florida Department of Children and Families, the state agency entrusted with assisting vulnerable and needy individuals, I commend the agency for correcting its conduct, cooperating with our investigation, and resolving its liability for its past actions,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Harrington for the Eastern District of Washington. “Together with our partners in the Justice Department’s Civil Division and the USDA, we will continue to investigate and hold accountable those who misuse and wrongfully obtain SNAP funding.”

“We appreciate the commitment and investigative assistance provided by our partners at the Department of Justice’s Civil Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office throughout this multi-state investigation,” said Special Agent in Charge Bethanne M. Dinkins of the USDA, Office of Inspector General (OIG). “We also wish to note the technical assistance provided by our colleagues in the Office of Audit at OIG. During the investigation, conducted by OIG’s Northeast Regional Office, we worked together to address the concerns of employees of multiple states and others who alleged that the integrity of the SNAP quality control process was weakened by third-party consultants and/or the implementation of methods that injected bias into the quality control process. These concerned individuals reported that cases were not being treated in a consistent manner, and that certain advice from consultants and/or the implementation of certain methods resulted in identified errors being diminished rather than used to improve eligibility determinations. The settlements reached to date send a strong message regarding the government’s commitment to work across agency lines to protect the integrity of SNAP.”

Under SNAP, USDA provides eligible low-income individuals and families with financial assistance to buy nutritious food. Since 2010, SNAP has served on average more than 45 million Americans per month and provided more than $71 billion annually. 

Although the federal government funds SNAP benefits, it relies on the states to determine whether applicants are eligible for benefits, to administer those benefits and to have appropriate quality control processes in place. To ensure that these quality control processes serve as an accurate check on eligibility decisions, USDA requires that these processes be free from bias and accurately report states’ error rates in awarding benefits.

The USDA reimburses states for a portion of their administrative expenses in administering SNAP, including expenses for providing quality control. It also pays performance bonuses to states that report the lowest and the most improved error rates each year, and can impose monetary sanctions on states with high error rates that do not show improvement. 

The settlement announced today resolves allegations that beginning in 2010, FDCF implemented improper policies and practices to reduce its SNAP error rate. Specifically, the United States alleged FDCF injected bias into its quality control process that resulted in FDCF submitting false quality control data and information to USDA, for which it received unentitled performance bonuses for fiscal years 2011 and 2012. In addition to its payment of $17.5 million, FDCF has also agreed to forego payment of an additional $14.7 million in unpaid bonuses that USDA awarded for fiscal years 2013 and 2014. 

The United States has previously settled allegations of improper manipulation of SNAP quality control findings with state agencies in Virginia, Wisconsin, Texas, Louisiana, Alaska and Mississippi, as well as with Osnes Consulting and its owner, Julie Osnes, who the government alleged advised and encouraged many of these agencies to engage in such manipulations. Including this settlement, the United States has now recovered over $60 million in connection with this investigation of the SNAP program.   

The settlement was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington, with investigative support from the USDA-OIG. The investigation arose out of a nationwide audit of SNAP Quality Control processes by the USDA-OIG. 

The matter was handled by Senior Trial Counsel Don Williamson of the Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dan Fruchter and Tyler Tornabene of the Eastern District of Washington.

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

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland made the following statement after the President’s signing of the Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy:

“The Department of Justice welcomes the Executive Order, which furthers a fair, open and competitive economy through a ‘whole of government’ approach. The department reaffirms its commitment to promoting competition by fairly and vigorously enforcing the antitrust laws. We will immediately begin implementing the interagency collaborations called for in the Executive Order, and we look forward to helping our agency partners use their regulatory authorities to bring greater competition to the U.S. economy. As President Biden emphasized in the Executive Order, competitive markets benefit all Americans — including consumers, workers, farmers and entrepreneurs. 

“Our nation’s laws promote competition through both antitrust enforcement and regulation. The Department of Justice is responsible for preventing harmful mergers and stopping anticompetitive conduct through vigorous enforcement of the antitrust laws. At the same time, the regulatory powers wielded by a wide variety of federal agencies can be used to lower barriers to competitive entry, promote innovation and limit the harms that flow from monopoly power. 

“Using enforcement and regulation in tandem will benefit America’s consumers, workers and small businesses by increasing competition throughout the economy, including in key areas such as labor markets and the agricultural, health care and technology sectors. The Executive Order’s ‘whole of government’ strategy builds on historical examples of the department working closely with regulators to promote and sustain competition. While the department’s antitrust consent decree shattered the AT&T telephone monopoly, the explosion in choice of phone service and network equipment innovation that followed also required rules that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) developed and worked with the department to implement. Similar collaborations have supported competition in industries ranging from airlines to health insurance. 

“As encouraged by the Executive Order, the department plans to work closely with other federal agencies to determine how their authorities can better promote competition and open markets in the modern economy. This increased interagency coordination will promote robust competition in the American economy. For example, working with the Department of Health and Human Services, we can promote high quality telehealth services that expand health care competition and lower prices for consumers and their employers.

“The department will closely examine its antitrust guidelines and policy statements to better educate the public on its enforcement priorities, and it will heighten its efforts to prevent mergers that would result in excessive consolidations of purchasing power.

“The department also will continue to expand its partnership with other agencies to promote competition in labor markets. When agencies work together to promote competition for workers, it helps all workers, including racial and ethnic minorities and disadvantaged and underrepresented groups. And the long-term benefits accrue not just to workers, but to the entire economy, including small businesses and rural communities.”

Click to view the Executive Order. 

The following joint statement can be attributed to Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Antitrust Division and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan: 

“We must ensure that the merger guidelines reflect current economic realities and empirical learning and that they guide enforcers to review mergers with the skepticism the law demands. The current guidelines deserve a hard look to determine whether they are overly permissive. We plan soon to jointly launch a review of our merger guidelines with the goal of updating them to reflect a rigorous analytical approach consistent with applicable law.”

A Peruvian national has been sentenced to 90 months in prison for operating a series of call centers in Peru that defrauded Spanish-speaking U.S. residents by falsely threatening them with arrest, deportation and other legal consequences. In the same case, two additional Peruvian co-conspirators pleaded guilty and two others were extradited to the Southern District of Florida to face prosecution for their roles in the scheme.

According to court documents, Omar Cuzcano Marroquin, 32, of Lima, Peru, was sentenced for conspiring to commit mail fraud and wire fraud through a series of Peruvian call centers that used false statements and threats to obtain money from Spanish-speaking individuals across the United States. Cuzcano and others falsely told victims that they were required to accept and pay for English-language courses and other educational products and that failure to do so placed them in legal jeopardy.

Cuzcano admitted that he and his employees falsely claimed to be lawyers, court officials, federal agents and representatives of a so-called “minor crimes court,” which does not exist. The callers falsely threatened victims with court proceedings, negative marks on their credit reports, imprisonment and immigration consequences if they did not immediately pay for the purportedly delivered products and settlement fees. Between April 2011 and July 2019, thousands of U.S. victims made payments based on calls from their call centers. Cuzcano and his co-conspirators collected millions of dollars from victims.

“The Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Branch will steadfastly pursue and prosecute transnational criminals who defraud vulnerable U.S. consumers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The defendants in this case brazenly defrauded recent immigrants by falsely promising free products to improve their English. In reality, the defendants were luring their victims into a trap of intimidation and fear, leaving them far worse off – with substantial financial losses and, often, emotional scars from these crimes. Today’s sentence demonstrates that defendants who prey upon U.S. consumers from abroad will not do so with impunity.”

“Today’s sentence serves not only as just punishment for this defendant but also as notice to others who seek to prey on vulnerable victims in the United States,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida. “Know that the Justice Department and its partners will aggressively investigate such criminal activity. Wherever you are, we will find you and hold you accountable.”

“In this international telemarketing scheme, deceptive scare tactics were used to threaten thousands of vulnerable U.S. consumers into purchasing undelivered products by falsely purporting to use America’s legal system against them and coercing them out of millions of dollars,” said Inspector in Charge Joseph Cronin of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Miami Division. “Today’s sentencing hopefully brings relief to U.S. residents who were victimized by this transnational fraudulent scheme. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, along with the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection branch and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, are committed to holding individuals who use the U.S. Mail to defraud consumers accountable.”

Two of Cuzcano’s co-defendants also recently pleaded guilty for their roles in the scheme. Henrry Adrian Milla Campuzano, 37, of Lima, Peru, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud earlier today. According to court documents, Milla was the owner and operator of fraudulent call centers located in Peru called “Latinos en Accion” and “Accion Latino,” which similarly extorted immigrants in the U.S. by falsely identifying themselves as private company lawyers and court or immigrations officials.

Another co-defendant, Fernan Huerta Haro, 34, of Lima, Peru, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud on June 11. According to court documents, Huerta owned and operated call centers called “Camino Al Progreso” and “Neshuer Corporation” in Peru. In pleading guilty, Huerta admitted that, from 2011 until his 2019 arrest, he and his employees threatened and defrauded many Spanish-speaking recent immigrants to the United States as part of the scheme. 

Milla and Huerta will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola Jr. this fall, and both face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. Judge Scola will determine their sentences after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Cuzcano, Milla and Huerta were part of a group of five defendants who were arrested on July 2, 2019, by Peruvian authorities based on a U.S. extradition request, and each has remained incarcerated since that time. The defendants were extradited to the Southern District of Florida on Oct. 23, 2020. All five defendants have now been convicted of conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud. Two additional indicted co-defendants in the case – Carlos Alberto Espinoza Huerta and Josmell Arturo Espinoza Huerta – evaded arrest at the time of their five co-defendants’ arrests in Peru. They were eventually located and arrested by Peruvian law enforcement, were extradited to the United States on June 25 and are being detained at the Federal Detention Center in Miami. 

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch investigated the case. Trial Attorneys Phil Toomajian and Max Goldman of the Consumer Protection Branch are prosecuting the case. The Federal Trade Commission, the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida, the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service and the Peruvian National Police provided critical assistance. 

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

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

Click to view Spanish language version of this press release. 

Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta issued the following statement today after the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) request for public comment on how best to invest American Rescue Plan funds to improve competition and resiliency in the meatpacking industry:

“The Justice Department commends the USDA for today’s step toward spurring new entry and increasing competition in meatpacking. USDA’s efforts align with the department’s commitment to vigorously enforcing the antitrust laws in the agriculture industry. The antitrust laws work best when paired with robust government policies to ensure that new competitors can successfully enter and challenge entrenched incumbents.”

WASHINGTON – Un ciudadano peruano fue sentenciado a 90 meses en prisión por operar una serie de centros de llamadas en Perú que defraudaron a residentes estadounidenses de habla hispana, amenazándolos falsamente con arresto, deportación y otras consecuencias legales. En ese mismo caso, otros dos cómplices peruanos se declararon culpables y otros dos fueron extraditados al Distrito Sur de Florida para ser procesados por su papel en el plan.

Según documentos judiciales, Omar Cuzcano Marroquín, de 32 años, de Lima, Perú, fue sentenciado por conspirar para cometer fraude postal y fraude electrónico por medio de una serie de centros de llamadas peruanos que utilizaban declaraciones falsas y amenazas para obtener dinero de personas de habla hispana en todo Estados Unidos. Cuzcano y otros le dijeron falsamente a las víctimas que debían aceptar y pagar cursos de inglés y otros productos educativos y que si no lo hacían se pondrían en peligro legal.

Cuzcano admitió que él y sus empleados afirmaron falsamente ser abogados, funcionarios judiciales, agentes federales y representantes de un llamado “tribunal de delitos menores”, que no existe. Las personas que llamaban amenazaban a las víctimas con falsos procedimiento judiciales, marcas negativas en sus informes crediticios, encarcelamiento y consecuencias migratorias si no pagaban de inmediato los productos que supuestamente entregaron y las tarifas de liquidación. Entre abril de 2011 y julio de 2019 miles de víctimas estadounidenses realizaron pagos basados en llamadas de sus centros de llamadas. Cuzcano y sus cómplices acumularon millones de dólares de las víctimas.

“La Rama de Protección al Consumidor del Departamento de Justicia perseguirá y enjuiciará firmemente a los delincuentes transnacionales que defrauden a los consumidores estadounidenses vulnerables”, dijo Brian M. Boynton, Secretario Interino de Justicia Auxiliar. “Los acusados en este caso defraudaron descaradamente a personas recién inmigradas prometiéndoles productos gratuitos para mejorar su inglés. En realidad los acusados atarían a sus víctimas a una trampa de intimidación y miedo, que los dejaba mucho peor, con importantes pérdidas financieras y, muchas veces, cicatrices emocionales por estos crímenes. La sentencia de hoy demuestra que los acusados que se aprovechan de los consumidores estadounidenses desde otros países no quedan impunes”.

“La sentencia de hoy no sólo sirve como un castigo para este acusado, pero como aviso a otras personas que busquen aprovecharse de víctimas vulnerables en Estados Unidos”, dijo el Fiscal Federal Interino, Juan Antonio González, del Distrito Sur de Florida. “Sepan que el Departamento de Justicia y sus socios investigarán agresivamente dicha actividad criminal. Dondequiera que estén, los encontraremos y los haremos responsables”.

“En este esquema de telemarketing internacional, se usaron tácticas engañosas que provocan miedo para amenazar a miles de consumidores estadounidenses vulnerables para que compraran productos que no se iban a entregar, al pretender usar falsamente el sistema legal de Estados Unidos en su contra y coaccionarlos con millones de dólares”, dijo el Inspector a Cargo, Joseph Cronin del Servicio de Inspección Postal de Estados Unidos División de Miami. “Se espera que la sentencia de hoy le brinde alivio a los residentes estadounidenses que fueron víctimas de este fraudulento esquema transnacional. El Servicio de Inspección Postal de Estados Unidos, junto con la Rama de Protección al Consumidor del Departamento de Justicia y la Oficina Fiscal de Estados Unidos están comprometidos con responsabilizar a las personas que utilizan el correo de Estados Unidos para defraudar a consumidores”.

Recientemente dos de los cómplices de Cuzcano también se declararon culpables de su participación en el plan. Henrry Adrián Milla Campuzano, de 37 años, de Lima Perú hoy se declaró culpable de conspiración al cometer fraude postal y electrónico. De acuerdo con los documentos judiciales, Mills era propietario y operador de fraudulentos centros de llamadas que se llaman “Latinos en Acción” y “Acción Latino” localizados en Perú, que de forma similar extorsionaban a inmigrantes en Estados Unidos cuando de falsa se identificaban como abogados de empresas privadas y funcionaros judiciales o de inmigración”.

Otro cómplice, Fernán Huerta Haro, de 34 años, de Lima, Perú, el 11 de junio se declaró culpable de conspiración al cometer fraude postal y electrónico. Según los documentos judiciales, Huerta operaba y era propietario de los centros de llamadas “Camino Al Progreso” y “Neshuer Corporation” en Perú. Al declararse culpable, Huerta admitió que, desde 2011 hasta su arresto en 2019, él y sus empleados amenazaron y defraudaron a muchas personas de habla hispana recién inmigradas a Estados Unidos como parte del plan.

Milla y Huerta serán sentenciados por el Juez Federal de Distrito, Robert N. Scola Jr. este otoño, y ambos enfrentan una pena máxima de 20 años de prisión. El Juez Scola determinará sus sentencias después de considerar las Directrices de Sentencia de Estados Unidos y otros factores legales.

Cuzcano, Milla y Huerta formaban parte de un grupo de cinco acusados que las autoridades peruanas arrestaron el 2 de julio de 2019 basado en una solicitud de extradición de Estados Unidos, y cada uno de ellos ha permanecido encarcelado desde ese momento. Los acusados fueron extraditados al Distrito Sur de Florida el 23 de octubre de 2020. Los cinco acusados ya fueron condenados por conspirar para cometer fraude postal y electrónico. Otros dos acusados en el caso, Carlos Alberto Espinoza Huerta y Josmell Arturo Espinoza Huerta, eludieron el arresto en el momento de la detención de sus cinco cómplices en Perú. La policía peruana finalmente los localizó y arrestó, los extraditaron a Estados Unidos el 25 de junio y están detenidos en el Centro de Detención Federal en Miami.

El Servicio de Inspección Postal de Estados Unidos y la División de Protección al Consumidor de la División Civil investigaron el caso. Los abogados litigantes Phil Toomajian y Max Goldman, de la Rama de Protección al Consumidor, está procesando el caso. La Comisión Federal de Comercio, la Oficina de Asuntos Internacionales del Departamento de Justicia, la Oficina del Fiscal de los Estados Unidos para el Distrito Sur de Florida, el Servicio de Seguridad Diplomática del Departamento de Estado y la Policía Nacional de Perú brindaron asistencia crítica.

Para más información sobre la Rama de Protección al Consumidor, visite la página web en www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. 

Una dictamen acusatorio simplemente es una acusación y todos los acusados se presumen inocentes hasta que se pruebe su culpabilidad, más allá de la duda razonable en un tribunal de justicia.

St. Jude Medical Inc. (St. Jude) has agreed to pay $27 million to settle allegations under the False Claims Act that, between November 2014 and October 2016, it knowingly sold defective heart devices to health care facilities that, in turn, implanted the devices into patients insured by federal health care programs. St. Jude was acquired by Abbott Laboratories in January 2017.

“To ensure the health and safety of patients, manufacturers of implantable cardiac devices must be transparent when communicating with the government about safety issues and incidents,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “We will hold accountable those companies whose conduct violates the law and puts patients’ health at risk.”

“Medical device manufacturers have an obligation to be truthful with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. government will not pay for devices that are unsafe and risk injury or death,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan F. Lenzner for the District of Maryland. “The government contends that St. Jude knowingly caused the submission of false claims and failed to inform the FDA with critical information about prior injuries and a death which, had the FDA been made aware, would have led to a recall. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to protecting Medicare and other federal health care programs from fraud, and in doing so strengthen patient safety.”

The government alleges that St. Jude failed to disclose serious adverse health events in connection with the premature depletion of the battery in certain models of its Fortify, Fortify Assura, Quadra and Unify devices, which are implantable defibrillators used in patients at risk of cardiac arrest due to an irregular heartbeat. The devices are surgically implanted into patients’ chests, and when the devices detect an irregular heartbeat, they send an electrical pulse to the heart to “shock” it back to its normal rhythm. The government alleged that, by 2013, St. Jude knew that lithium clusters formed on the batteries of the devices, causing some of the batteries to short and, in turn, suffer a premature power drain. 

The government alleges that, in late 2014, St. Jude submitted a request to the FDA to approve a change to prevent lithium clusters from draining the battery and told the FDA, “no serious injury, permanent harm or deaths have been reported associated with this” issue. However, according to the government’s allegations, St. Jude was aware at that time of two reported serious injuries and one death associated with premature battery depletion (PBD) induced by lithium clusters.

St. Jude continued to distribute devices that had been manufactured without the new design. In August 2016, St. Jude contacted the FDA and informed it that the number of PBD events had increased to 729, including two deaths and 29 events associated with loss of pacing. On Oct. 10, 2016, St. Jude issued a medical advisory regarding the PBD caused by lithium cluster shorts, which FDA classified as a Class I recall. A Class I recall is where there is a reasonable probability that “violative” products “will cause serious adverse health consequences, including death.” After the recall, St. Jude no longer sold the older devices, but thousands of them had been implanted into patients between Nov. 20, 2014, and Oct. 10, 2016. 

“Ensuring patient safety is our number one priority,” said Special Agent in Charge Maureen R. Dixon of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “HHS-OIG will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and hold accountable medical companies who put profits over people and ensure the integrity of the Medicare and Medicaid programs.”

“The FDA regulates medical devices to assure that patient health is protected,” said Special Agent in Charge Mark S. McCormack of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, Metro Washington Field Office. “Reporting information untruthfully to the agency about the safety of medical devices jeopardizes patients’ health and safety. We will continue to investigate and bring to justice those who place the public health at risk.”

“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) and its law enforcement partners will aggressively investigate fraud that puts the health of our military members and their families at risk,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher W. Dillard of the DCIS Mid-Atlantic Field Office. “We hope this settlement sends a clear warning to medical corporations that choose profit over patient care.”

“The OPM OIG prioritizes the health and safety of patients above all else,” said Norbert E. Vint, Deputy Inspector General Performing the Duties of the Inspector General of the Office of Personnel Management’s Office of Inspector General (OPM-OIG). “We are grateful for today’s settlement and applaud the hard work of our Department of Justice and law enforcement partners.”

The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Debbie Burke, a patient who received one of the devices that was subject to recall. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Debbie Burke v. St. Jude Medical, Inc., No. 16-cv-3611 (D. Md.).

The resolution obtained in this matter was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, Fraud Section; the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland; the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General and Office of General Counsel; DCIS; OPM-OIG; and the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations and Office of Chief Counsel.  

This matter was handled by Trial Attorney Jonathan Gold of the Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas Corcoran and Jane Andersen of the District of Maryland.

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

The Justice Department announced that a Michigan man was sentenced today for willfully causing bodily injury to a Black teenager because of the teenager’s race.

Lee Mouat, 43, pleaded guilty on March 4. He was sentenced to 60 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his hate crime.

According to documents filed in connection with this case, Mouat admitted that he confronted a group of Black teenagers, including the victim, at a state park in Monroe, Michigan. Mouat repeatedly used racial slurs and said that Black people had no right to use the public beach where the incident occurred. Mouat then struck one of the teens in the face with a bike lock, knocking out several of the victim’s teeth, lacerating his face and mouth, and fracturing his jaw. Mouat also attempted to strike another Black teenager with the bike lock.

“The defendant brutally attacked teenagers at a public beach because these young people are Black,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “Hate-fueled violent crimes like this have no place in our communities. Protecting Americans from hate crimes is a top priority of the Justice Department and we will use every tool available to bring perpetrators to justice.”

“Our office is committed to protecting the rights of all citizens, and prosecuting hate crimes is a top priority,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Saima Mohsin for the Eastern District of Michigan. “The cowardly and unprovoked attack on this young victim is terribly disturbing. Every individual citizen has the right to not live in fear of violence or attack based on the color of their skin.”

“Combating hate crimes and protecting individual's civil rights is one of the top priorities of the FBI,” said Special Agent in Charge Timothy Waters of the FBI Detroit Field Office. “Mouat was held accountable for his violent and hateful actions due to the collaborative efforts of the FBI, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office and the Department of Justice. The outcome of this case sends a clear message to our community that law enforcement at every level will investigate crimes motivated by hate and bring the perpetrators to justice.”

This case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frances Carlson of the Eastern District of Michigan and Trial Attorney Tara Allison of the Civil Rights Division.

For more information and resources on the department’s efforts to combat hate crimes, visit www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.

Medical device manufacturers Alere Inc. and Alere San Diego Inc. (collectively, Alere) have agreed to pay $38.75 million to resolve allegations that the companies violated the False Claims Act by billing, and causing others to bill, the Medicare program for defective rapid point-of-care testing devices. 

The settlement announced today resolves allegations that, from 2008 to 2016, Alere knowingly sold defective INRatio blood coagulation monitors used by Medicare beneficiaries taking anticoagulant drugs, such as warfarin. For those patients, blood coagulation monitoring is essential to determining a clinically appropriate and safe dosage for their medications. Too much of an anticoagulant drug can cause major bleeding, and too little of the drug can cause blood clots and strokes. 

Since at least 2008, Alere allegedly knew that the software algorithm used in each version of its INRatio monitors contained a material defect. Based on its own internal research, as well as external complaints and warnings, Alere allegedly was aware that INRatio devices had a “system limitation” that produced inaccurate and unreliable results for some patients. The United States alleged that, despite awareness that INRatio systems were linked to over a dozen deaths and hundreds of injuries, including intra-cerebral hemorrhaging and cardiovascular events following bleeding episodes, Alere concealed the defect for years and billed Medicare for the use of defective INRatio devices. Alere allegedly failed to take appropriate corrective actions until 2016, when the devices were removed from the market following a nationwide Class I product recall undertaken at the request of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“Patients and health care providers rely on diagnostic devices to provide reliable health information,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department's Civil Division. “The Department of Justice will hold accountable medical device companies that knowingly sell defective products that can harm patients and waste taxpayer dollars.”

“Health care companies have an obligation to be candid and clear in their disclosures to the FDA,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig for the District of New Jersey. “The government expects companies to be proactive in investigating issues affecting patient safety. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey will hold accountable any company that fails to meet these obligations.”

“Companies that withhold information from or provide false information to FDA put patients’ health at risk and jeopardize the integrity of the regulatory process designed to protect the public health,” said Timothy Stenzel, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Office of In Vitro Diagnostics and Radiological Health in the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health.

“Medical device providers who cut corners or purposefully market defective tools put profit above patient health,” said Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. of the FBI. “The FBI will not sit idly by when people’s lives are at risk. It’s an ill-advised business model that ignores the consequences of getting caught.”

This settlement was the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey, with investigative support from the FBI’s Newark Division and Healthcare Fraud Unit Major Provider Response Team and the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. 

This matter was handled by Trial Attorney Christopher Terranova of the Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel W. Meyler of the District of New Jersey.     

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

The Justice Department announced today that the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is releasing $7.65 million in a competitive microgrant grant solicitation that will fund body-worn cameras (BWCs) to any law enforcement department with 50 or fewer full-time sworn personnel, rural agencies (those agencies within non-urban or non-metro counties); and federally-recognized Tribal agencies.

“The Justice Department is committed to providing law enforcement with valuable resources to increase accountability and build trust with the communities they serve,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Today we encourage all small, rural and Tribal law enforcement agencies to apply for funding for this important tool that will enhance protection for both officers and citizens.”

“The grant solicitation today will help law enforcement agencies and their communities improve evidentiary outcomes, and enhance the safety of, and improve interactions between, officers and the public,” said Acting Director Kristen Mahoney of BJA. “Importantly, this grant program will make it easier for small, rural and Tribal law enforcement agencies to apply for funding. It’s an online application that will streamline the grant process for these agencies.”

Funds must be used to purchase or lease body-worn cameras and may include expenses reasonably related to BWC program implementation. Funding can be used to support pilot BWC programs, establish new BWC implementation or expand existing programs.

BJA has selected Justice & Security Strategies Inc. to administer the grant program through a cooperative agreement. For more information and to apply, please visit https://www.srtbwc.com. All applications are due by August 31, 2021.

Agencies interested in body-worn camera funding that do not meet the eligibility criteria for small, rural and Tribal as described in the microgrant solicitation should note that the FY 2021 Body-Worn Camera Policy and Implementation Program to Support Law Enforcement Agencies grant solicitation is currently open. That solicitation will close on July 12, 2021. The anticipated total amount to be awarded under that solicitation is $27.5 million.

Today’s announcement follows Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco’s recent memo  to the department’s law enforcement components directing them to develop and submit for review their plans for BWC policies that require agents to wear and activate BWC recording equipment for purposes of recording their actions during: (1) a pre-planned attempt to serve an arrest warrant or other pre-planned arrest, including the apprehension of fugitives sought on state and local warrants; or (2) the execution of a search or seizure warrant or order. The Deputy Attorney General will work with the department’s law enforcement components in the coming weeks to review their policies and finalize implementation plans. 

For resources to support the development and implementation of body-worn camera programs, the Department of Justice has created a Body-Worn Camera Tool Kit.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance helps to make American communities safer by strengthening the nation’s criminal justice system. BJA’s grants, cooperative agreements, training and technical assistance and policy development services provide state, local and Tribal governments with the cutting-edge tools and best practices they need to reduce violent and drug-related crime, support law enforcement and combat victimization.

BJA is a component of the Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. 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

A Louisiana man pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to defraud the IRS.

According to court documents, from 2011 to at least June 2019, Mathew Reck, of St. Tammany Parish, conspired to defraud the IRS by underreporting his own and others’ individual incomes. With respect to his personal returns, Reck directed his co-conspirator accountant in emails to “get really creative with the 2012 taxes” and to “crush” his 2013 taxes. On his 2012 and 2013 tax returns, Reck underreported the income that he earned from his construction businesses, SES Construction Consulting Group (SES) and Global Technical Solutions (Global), which he co-owned until December 2015.

Reck also conspired with others to defraud the IRS by paying some SES and Global workers “off the books” in cash, by underpaying employment taxes, and by not reporting workers’ full compensations to the IRS. In total, Reck caused a tax loss to the United States of $1,017,024.

Reck is scheduled to be sentenced at a later date and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. He 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 the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys William Montague and Parker Tobin of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Moses of the Eastern District of Louisiana are prosecuting the case.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland this afternoon met with U.S. Capitol Police officers who defended the Capitol on January 6th, and with Department of Justice employees who have worked tirelessly to hold accountable those who attacked the Capitol six months ago today.

Along with Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco, the Attorney General met with investigators, analysts, prosecutors, and professional staff assigned to January 6th cases from the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. During the meeting, the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General also acknowledged the extraordinary work of dedicated public servants in U.S. Attorney’s Offices and FBI Field Offices across the country.

The Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General recognized the important work and recent milestones in this investigation, including the arrest of more than 535 defendants in almost all 50 states. The Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General encouraged the team to continue to follow the facts in this case and charge what the evidence supports to hold all January 6th perpetrators accountable.

Later, the Attorney General visited with members of the U.S. Capitol Police, where he commended them for their bravery on January 6th and expressed his appreciation for their continued service and sacrifice.

***

The FBI has released 11 new videos of suspects in violent assaults on federal officers on January 6th and is seeking the public’s help to identify them. For images and video of the attackers, please visit https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/capitol-violence. Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

The charges contained in any criminal complaint or indictment are merely allegations. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

A federal jury in the District of Columbia convicted a Maryland woman today for preparing three false tax returns for District of Columbia residents that claimed more than $1.1 million in fraudulent refunds.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Charese Johnson, of Aberdeen, Maryland, operated Prodigy Accounting Services and prepared false amended income tax returns in 2014 for three District of Columbia taxpayers. Those returns fraudulently claimed large refunds based upon fictious refundable credits and phony withholdings that had never been paid to the IRS. 

Johnson is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 17 and faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison on each count. A federal district 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 made the announcement.

Special Agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Abigail Burger Chingos and Jeffrey McLellan of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

Auto parts supplier Tupy agreed to restructure its acquisition of Teksid after the Department of Justice raised concerns that the merger would result in higher prices and reduced quality and timeliness of production for crucial components used in heavy-duty engines. As initially proposed, the deal would have combined the two most significant suppliers of engine blocks and cylinder heads for heavy-duty engines to customers in North America. These components are key inputs for engines used in large trucks, construction and agricultural equipment, as well as numerous other vehicles. 

Under the original agreement, Tupy would have acquired Teksid’s entire iron automotive components business from Teksid’s parent company Stellantis N.V. The original acquisition included Teksid’s plant and other assets in Mexico used to manufacture iron blocks and heads for U.S. automotive customers. Following the restructuring, Tupy will acquire only Teksid’s iron operations in Brazil and Portugal. Teksid will retain its iron operations in Mexico and continue to compete with Tupy to supply U.S. customers.

“Tupy’s decision to restructure their merger is a victory for American engine manufacturers and consumers,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “I commend our team for their diligence in conducting a thorough investigation, a testament to the division’s resolve to enforce the antitrust laws. As originally proposed, the transaction would have eliminated competition that keeps prices low and quality high for vital industries such as transportation and agriculture.”

Tupy S.A., a Brazilian company headquartered in Brazil, is the largest supplier of iron blocks and heads for heavy-duty engines to customers in North America. Tupy owns four iron foundries, two in Brazil and two in Mexico. 

Teksid S.p.A., an Italian corporation headquartered in Italy, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Stellantis, a multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Teksid is the second largest supplier of blocks and heads for heavy-duty engines in North America. Teksid owns iron foundries in Mexico, Brazil, Poland, and Portugal. Teksid is also part of a joint venture that owns an iron foundry in China. 

Today the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division filed a notice of withdrawal of consent to a proposed settlement with the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The department has also filed to voluntarily dismiss its complaint without prejudice. The department determined that the settlement will not adequately protect the department’s rights to investigate other conduct by NAR that could impact competition in the real estate market and may harm home sellers and home buyers. The department is taking this action to permit a broader investigation of NAR’s rules and conduct to proceed without restriction. 

“The proposed settlement will not sufficiently protect the Antitrust Division’s ability to pursue future claims against NAR,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Real estate is central to the American economy and consumers pay billions of dollars in real estate commissions every year. We cannot be bound by a settlement that prevents our ability to protect competition in a market that profoundly affects Americans’ financial well-being.”

As the real estate industry’s leading trade association, NAR has rules and policies that affect millions of real estate brokers and agents and, in turn, impact millions of American home buyers and sellers, who, according to reported industry data, paid over $85 billion in residential real estate commissions last year. The department filed a complaint and proposed settlement on Nov. 19, 2020. The complaint alleged that NAR established and enforced certain rules and policies that illegally restrained competition in residential real estate services. The proposed settlement sought to remedy those illegal practices and encourage greater competition among realtors, but it also prevented the department from pursuing other antitrust claims relating to NAR’s rules. 

Under a stipulation signed by the parties and entered by the court, the department has sole discretion to withdraw its consent to the proposed settlement. The proposed settlement may also be modified with consent from the department and from NAR. The department sought NAR’s agreement to modify the settlement to adequately protect and preserve the department’s rights to investigate and challenge additional conduct by NAR, but the department and NAR could not reach an agreement. Because the settlement resolved only some of the department’s concerns with NAR’s rules, this step ensures that the department can continue to enforce the antitrust laws in this important market. 

A New York construction executive was sentenced today in Manhattan federal court to 51 months in prison for evading taxes on more than $1.8 million in bribes he received from building subcontractors.

According to the criminal information, as well as other public documents and recent court proceedings, between 2011 and 2017, Vito Nigro, formerly of Middletown, New Jersey, and now of Ocean, New Jersey, was a senior construction official at Turner Construction Company, a major construction firm that performed building projects in New York City for Bloomberg LLP. Nigro used his position to participate in a scheme to obtain bribes from construction subcontractors, who paid kickbacks in exchange for being awarded construction contracts and subcontracts. In total, Nigro received approximately $1,350,000 in unlawful cash payments, which he did not report on his 2011 to 2017 tax returns. Nigro also received in-kind bribes in the form of renovations and improvement projects at his New Jersey residence.

In imposing the sentence, Judge Torres indicated that a restitution order would be entered, with the amount being no less than $780,000 owed by Nigro to the IRS, and no more than $812,000.

In related proceedings, co-conspirator Ronald Olson, the former vice president and deputy operations manager at Turner Construction, was sentenced on June 15 by the Honorable P. Kevin Castel to 46 months in prison for evading taxes on more than $1.5 million in bribes. Another co-conspirator, Anthony Guzzone, a former Director of Global Construction at Bloomberg, was sentenced on Jan. 19 by the Honorable Lewis J. Liman to 38 months in prison for evading taxes on more than $1.45 million in bribes in the same scheme. Michael Campana, a subordinate construction manager at Bloomberg also involved in the same scheme, was sentenced on July 24, 2020, by the Honorable Denise L. Cote to 24 months in prison for evading taxes on more than $420,000 in bribes.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg and Acting U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss for the Southern District of New York made the announcement.

IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Senior Litigation Counsel Stanley J. Okula of the Tax Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney David Raymond Lewis of the Southern District of New York’s Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit are in charge of the prosecution.

The U.S. Department of Justice today released the following statement from spokesman Anthony Coley following the Supreme Court’s decision in Brnovich, et al. v. Democratic National Committee, et al.:

“The Attorney General has made clear, ‘the Department of Justice will never stop working to protect the democracy to which all Americans are entitled.’ The department remains strongly committed to challenging discriminatory election laws and will continue to use every legal tool available to protect all qualified Americans seeking to participate in the electoral process. The department urges Congress to enact additional legislation to provide more effective protection for every American’s right to vote.”

ALEXANDRIA/LAFAYETTE, La. - Acting United States Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook announced the resolution of numerous cases this week in United States District Court in the Western District of Louisiana, all of which are listed below.

SENTENCING HEARINGS – LAFAYETTE

Joshua L. Damond, 29, of Lafayette, Louisiana, was sentenced by Chief United States District Judge S. Maurice Hicks, Jr. to 78 months (6 years, 5 months) in prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Damond was charged in an indictment and pleaded guilty on March 8, 2021.

In June 2020, Damond led law enforcement officers on a high-speed chase after leaving the residence where his daughter lived with her mother. When Damond went to the residence where his daughter lived, the mother refused to allow him to enter the residence, but he kicked in the door and then got into a verbal altercation with her. The mother and daughter left, and he followed them. Law enforcement officers arrived on the scene and observed Damond leaving the area and attempted a traffic stop. He refused to stop, and a pursuit ensued. During the chase, officers observed Damond throw items from the vehicle. Other officers assisting in the chase stopped to find the item that was thrown and found a firearm wrapped in the blue shirt Damond had been wearing. He was apprehended and arrested. The firearm was determined to be stolen.

Damond has prior felony convictions for possession of cocaine (2014) and monies derived from drug violation and illegal possession of stolen firearm (2015) and is prohibited from possessing a firearm.

The ATF, Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office and Jefferson Davis Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney John W. Nickel prosecuted the case.

Shaun J. Labbe, 38, and Ana C. Smith, 33, both of Scott, Louisiana, have been sentenced by United States District Judge Robert L. Summerhays on drug trafficking charges. Labbe was sentenced to 210 months (17 years, 6 months) and Smith was sentenced to 72 months (6 years) in prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release for each.

Labbe and Smith were indicted on March 18, 2020 and charged with drug trafficking and firearms charges. Labbe pleaded guilty March 5, 2021 to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Smith pleaded guilty January 6, 2021 to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Evidence introduced in court revealed that in 2018, agents with the Lafayette Parish Narcotics Unit began investigating Labbe and Smith who were suspected of selling large quantities of methamphetamine from their residence and his place of business. Law enforcement agents obtained search warrants for their residence and his place of business and in October 2018 executed those warrants. Agents found 370.7 grams of methamphetamine, 45.4 grams of marijuana and other narcotics, as well as over $8,000 in cash, two handguns, and other drug paraphernalia. During a search of Labbe’s place of business, agents found approximately 5,053 grams of methamphetamine which was hidden inside a child’s playhouse. Labbe admitted the seized items and cash found in the residence were his and that he was aware the narcotics were hidden in the business. Smith admitted to law enforcement that she knew about the items in the residence and that she participated in the distribution and sale of methamphetamine in Lafayette Parish.

The DEA, FBI and Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney John W. Nickel prosecuted the cases.

SENTENCING HEARINGS – ALEXANDRIA

United States District Judge Dee D. Drell sentenced the following defendants in Alexandria:

Chace Middlebrooks, 37, of Evergreen, Louisiana, was sentenced to spend 59 months in prison, followed by 2 years of supervised release, for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Middlebrooks was charged in an indictment and pleaded guilty March 26, 2021. According to court documents, Middlebrooks had an outstanding arrest warrant and on April 20, 2020, two Louisiana State Police troopers spotted a vehicle that belonged to him near a residence in Evergreen. As the troopers drove toward the vehicle, the driver who was later identified as Middlebrooks, led the troopers on a brief pursuit and after a short time they were able to stop the vehicle and arrest him. Middlebrooks admitted to having a sawed-off shotgun in his possession prior to the pursuit and troopers were able to find and seize the gun. Middlebrooks has four prior felony convictions for unauthorized entry of an inhabited dwelling (2009); theft and illegal possession of stolen things (2011); violation of a protective order (2019); and domestic abuse battery by strangulation (2019), and is prohibited from possessing a firearm.

The ATF and Louisiana State Police conducted the investigation and Assistant U.S. Attorney Leon H. Whitten prosecuted the case.

Baldomero C. Velasco, 31, of Baytown, Texas, and Antonio Zarate, 22, of South Houston, Texas, were each sentenced on drug trafficking charges. Velasco and Zarate were each sentenced to 28 months in prison, followed by 1 year of supervised release.  Both defendants pleaded guilty to the charges on January 31, 2020.

Velasco pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and admitted to conspiring with his co-defendants to willfully joining in the conspiracy and knew of its unlawful purpose. He stipulated and agreed that the conspiracy involved at least 500 grams or more of cocaine and that the acts took place in the Western District of Louisiana.

Zarate pleaded guilty to a Bill of Information charging interstate travel or transportation in aid of racketeering. He admitted that on March 16 and 17, 2018, he traveled from the State of Tennessee to the State of Louisiana with the specific intent of carrying out an unlawful activity, by conspiring to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.

The Drug Enforcement Administration and Department of Homeland Security-Office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. McCoy prosecuted the cases.

# # #

Today, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland issued a memorandum imposing a moratorium on federal executions while a review of the Justice Department’s policies and procedures is pending.

“The Department of Justice must ensure that everyone in the federal criminal justice system is not only afforded the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States, but is also treated fairly and humanely,” said Attorney General Garland. “That obligation has special force in capital cases.”

In the last two years, the department made a series of changes to capital case policies and procedures and carried out the first federal executions in nearly two decades between July 2020 and January 2021. That included adopting a new protocol for administering lethal injections at the federal Bureau of Prisons, using the drug pentobarbital. Attorney General Garland’s memorandum directs the Deputy Attorney General to lead a multi-pronged review of these recent policy changes, including:

• A review coordinated by the Office of Legal Policy of the Addendum to the Federal Execution Protocol, adopted in 2019, which will assess, among other things, the risk of pain and suffering associated with the use of pentobarbital.
• A review coordinated by the Office of Legal Policy to consider changes to Justice Department regulations made in November 2020 that expanded the permissible methods of execution beyond lethal injection, and authorized the use of state facilities and personnel in federal executions.
• A review of the Justice Manual’s capital case provisions, including the December 2020 and January 2021 changes to expedite execution of capital sentences.

The Attorney General’s memorandum requires the reviews to include consultations with a wide range of stakeholders including the relevant department components, other federal and state agencies, medical experts and experienced capital counsel, among others.

No federal executions will be scheduled while the reviews are pending.

The Attorney General’s memorandum can be found here: /media/1149381/dl?inline.

The Justice Department announced yesterday that a federal grand jury indicted Melvin Hilson, 49, currently a deputy warden at the Mississippi State Penitentiary, for repeatedly striking an inmate and knocking him to the ground, resulting in injury to the inmate.

The indictment charges Hilson with a felony civil rights offense for assaulting the inmate in 2016, when Hilson was a member of the K-9 Unit at the prison, which is also known as Parchman. The indictment also alleges that Hilson wrote a false report to conceal his unlawful assault and, later, lied to investigators from the Mississippi Department of Corrections when questioned about the assault. 

Yesterday’s indictment was announced by Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner for the Northern District of Mississippi and FBI Jackson Special Agent in Charge Michelle Sutphin.

This case was investigated by the Jackson Division of the FBI.  Special Litigation Counsel Samantha Trepel and Trial Attorney Cameron Bell of the Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Mims of the Northern District of Mississippi are prosecuting the case. 

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

A Louisiana man pleaded guilty yesterday to possession of an animal for use in an animal fighting venture.

According to court documents, beginning as early as June 22, 2017, Clay Turner, 61, of Loranger, possessed and trained dogs for the purpose of having them participate in animal fighting ventures. On telephone calls obtained via court-authorized wiretaps, Turner and others discussed gambling on dog fights, arranging and participating in dog fights, sponsoring and exhibiting dogs in dog fights, training and housing dogs for the purposes of dog fighting, commerce in and transport of fighting dogs and the promotion of dog fights. Turner also stated he would give the dogs “dex,” referring to Dexamethasone—a substance that causes bowel evacuation—to achieve proper weight for the dog fights.

On or about Oct. 24, 2017, a federal law enforcement team consisting of agents from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the FBI, and the U.S. Marshals Service and other agencies, executed a search warrant on Turner’s residence in Loranger. During the search, 33 dogs were found on the property, many of which had injuries, scarring, and/or wounding consistent with dog fighting activities. Law enforcement also recovered a large collection of dog fighting paraphernalia.

“Our system of justice does not tolerate the torment and death of animals in this blood sport for personal entertainment or financial gain,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Jean E. Williams of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Beyond the harm imposed on these dogs, animal shelters, nonprofit organizations, and the taxpayers pay the price for caring for the dogs once they are no longer useful to the dog fighters. We will aggressively pursue and prosecute individuals who engage in animal fighting of any kind.”

Turner pleaded guilty to possession of an animal for an animal fighting venture. Turner is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 28 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Trial Attorneys Matthew D. Evans and Christopher Hale of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Shih of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana are prosecuting the case.

The Justice Department announced a settlement with the City of Killeen, Texas, to provide equal access in its programs, services, facilities and activities to individuals with disabilities, including veterans. The agreement is part of the department’s commitment to ensuring that civic institutions comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Killeen has a large population of veterans, active duty military service members, retirees and their families.

Under the agreement, the City of Killeen will remove barriers to access in buildings such as City Hall, police stations, libraries, technology centers, community centers and places of recreation. The agreement requires the City to make changes to its facilities so that parking, routes into the buildings, entrances, restrooms, signage, service counters and drinking fountains are accessible to people with disabilities, and that auditoriums and arenas have the required wheelchair and companion seating. The agreement also requires the City to provide aids and services to ensure effective communication for individuals with hearing disabilities, establish accessible emergency shelters and services, assure that its websites are accessible to individuals with disabilities and implement a plan for the accessibility of sidewalks and curb cuts within the City.

“The Americans with Disabilities Act mandates that individuals with disabilities have equal access to civic programs, services and facilities," said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. "The Civil Rights Division is committed to ensuring that cities and other public entities eliminate physical and communication barriers that prevent individuals with disabilities from participating fully in community life. We commend the City of Killeen for its commitment to working with the Civil Rights Division to ensure equal access for individuals with disabilities, including veterans.”

“The City of Killeen has committed to removing barriers to civic participation for individuals with disabilities, including the many veterans who call our district home,” said U.S. Attorney Ashley Hoff for the Western District of Texas. “Our office remains dedicated to supporting efforts to improve access and inclusion for individuals with disabilities.”

This matter was handled by the Disability Rights Section of the department’s Civil Rights Division. The Justice Department plays a central role in advancing the nation’s goal of equal opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency for people with disabilities. For more information on the Civil Rights Division, please visit the ADA website at http://www.justice.gov/crt. For more information on the ADA, please call the department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (TDD 800-514-0383) or visit www.ada.gov.  ADA complaints may be filed online at http://www.ada.gov/complaint/.

The Department of Justice is pleased to announce the opening of the application period for federally recognized Tribes to participate in the Tribal Access Program (TAP) for National Crime Information, which provides federally recognized Tribes the ability to access and exchange data with national crime information databases for authorized criminal justice and non-criminal justice purposes. 

“The Department of Justice is committed to improving public safety in Tribal communities and the Tribal Access Program (TAP) is a key component in achieving this goal,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. “TAP provides a means for federally recognized Tribes to effectively access critical criminal justice information to improve public safety and protect Tribal communities. This program has helped improve police officer safety, apprehend fugitives, register convicted sex offenders, enforce domestic violence protection orders, and protect children. With this opening of the application period, more Tribes will be able to protect their communities by participating in this successful program.”

The program provides training as well as software and biometric/biographic kiosk workstations to process fingerprints, take mugshots, and submit information to FBI Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) systems. There are currently 99 federally recognized Tribes participating in TAP. The department will accept TAP applications from July 1 through Aug. 31, 2021. Tribes selected to participate will be notified in September.

“TAP is a positive resource for criminal and non-criminal justice organizations of our tribal nation,” said Program Supervisor Orlando Bowman of the Navajo Nation Police Department, Information Management Section. “We continue to coordinate and communicate on potential uses and applications.”

“The Tribal Access Program (TAP) has become an indispensable tool in providing vital law enforcement information to our officers in the field as well as providing 21st century policing techniques for our community,” said Chief of Police Dana Norton of the Bear River Band of the Rohnerville Rancheria. “The TAP has allowed our nation to flourish and succeed every day since launching with our department.”  

For Tribes that are considering applying, TAP staff will be conducting informational webinars describing the program and its capabilities throughout July and August, beginning on July 1. Webinars will be offered on the following dates: July 1, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 23, 26 & 29, and Aug. 2, 6, 12, 13, 17 & 19.

Using TAP, Tribes have shared information about missing persons; registered convicted sex offenders; entered domestic violence orders of protection for nationwide enforcement; run criminal histories; identified and arrested fugitives; entered bookings and convictions; and completed fingerprint-based record checks for non-criminal justice purposes such as screening employees or volunteers who work with children. 

The department offers TAP services through one of the following two methods:

• TAP-LIGHT: Provides software that enables full access (both query and entry capabilities) to national crime information databases such as the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), the Interstate Identification Index (III), and the International Justice and Public Safety Network (Nlets) for criminal justice purposes.
• TAP-FULL: In addition to the basic access capabilities of TAP-LIGHT, provides a kiosk workstation that enables the ability to submit and query fingerprint-based transactions via FBI’s Next Generation Identification (NGI) system for both criminal justice and non-criminal justice purposes.

Because of the program’s funding sources, eligible Tribes must have — and agree to use TAP for — at least one of the following:

• A Tribal sex offender registry authorized by the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act;
• A Tribal law enforcement agency that has arrest powers;
• A Tribal court that issues orders of protection; or
• A Tribal government agency that screens individuals for foster care placement or that investigates allegations of child abuse/neglect.

TAP is funded by the Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART); the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS); the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC); and the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW). TAP is co-managed by the department’s Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) and Office of Tribal Justice (OTJ). 

For more information about TAP, including our webinar dates, time and access information, visit www.justice.gov/tribal/tribal-access-program-tap.

A Florida man pleaded guilty today to tax evasion in federal district court in Fort Lauderdale. 

According to court documents, Alejandro Gomez, of Broward County, operated Fleischmann’s Produce, a company that imported fresh herbs for wholesale distribution. Gomez spent approximately $896,951 in 2014 and $1,051,213 in 2015 gambling at a Broward County casino. In March 2015, Gomez filed a false 2014 corporate tax return for Fleischmann’s with the IRS that overstated total business expenditures by falsely reporting the $896,951 in gambling expenditures as cost of goods sold. The next year, Gomez caused a false 2015 corporate tax return to be filed that again falsely characterized his gambling expenditures as cost of goods sold. Because the false items reported on Fleishmann’s 2014 and 2015 corporate returns artificially reduced the income that Gomez received from Fleischmann’s, Gomez also substantially underreported his personal income for both years. In total, Gomez caused a tax loss to the IRS of over $545,000.

Gomez is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 30 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. He 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 Juan Antonio Gonzalez for the Southern District of Florida made the announcement. 

IRS-Criminal Investigation is investigating the case. 

Trial Attorneys Grace Albinson and David Zisserson of the Justice Department’s Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

A federal court in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has permanently enjoined a Rockford-area tax return preparer from preparing returns for others and from owning, operating or franchising any tax return preparation business in the future.

According to the court’s order, Gretchen Alvarez, aka Gretchen Trejo, consented to entry of the injunction, which permits the United States to conduct post-judgment discovery to monitor compliance. The terms of the order require that Alvarez, both individually and doing business as Sick Credit Repair, Tax and Legal Services, send notice of the injunction to multiple individuals, and, during the tax filing season, advertise the injunction in places where she conducts business. The civil complaint filed against Alvarez alleged that she prepared federal income tax returns for Rockford-area taxpayers that significantly understated her customers’ tax liabilities by fabricating business losses, which fraudulently reduced her customer’s legitimate W-2 taxable income. The complaint also alleged that Alvarez falsely claimed that some of her customers attended higher education institutions to fraudulently claim education credits on the returns she prepared.

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.

A federal grand jury returned an indictment against Belgium-based Seris Security NV (Seris) and three executives for their roles in a conspiracy to fix prices, rig bids and allocate customers for defense-related security services, including a multimillion-dollar contract issued in 2020 to provide security services to the U.S. Department of Defense for military bases and installations in Belgium. This is the second charge and first indictment involving an international conspiracy obtained by the Procurement Collusion Strike Force (PCSF) and follows G4S Secure Solution NV’s (G4S) agreement to plead guilty in the investigation. 

“The companies and individuals indicted are alleged to have rigged bids submitted to the U.S. Department of Defense and others, and abused the public trust placed in them as providers of security services at critical locations,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “We are committed to prosecuting procurement collusion that victimizes U.S. government agencies, wherever it occurs, and we are determined to hold those who seek to exploit U.S. government programs accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Today’s announcement demonstrates the culmination of extremely well-coordinated, diligent and tireless efforts by the FBI and our law enforcement partners working on the Procurement Collusion Strike Force to root out collusion that targets U.S. taxpayer dollars funding contracts overseas,” said Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. of the FBI’s New York Field Office.

“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) is committed to protecting the integrity of the Department of Defense procurement system,” said Deputy Director Paul K. Sternal of DCIS. “This indictment demonstrates our resolve, alongside Department of Justice and Procurement Collusion Strike Force partners, to bring those who corrupt the competitive DoD contracting process and endanger U.S. national security to justice.”

The indictment, returned in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, charges former G4S Chief Executive Officer Jean Paul Van Avermaet; Seris Security NV (Seris); former Seris Chief Executive Officer Danny Vandormael; and former Seris Director of Guarding & Monitoring Peter Verpoort with conspiring to fix prices, rig bids and allocate customers for contracts for the provision of security services that protect the national security interests of the United States in Belgium. All of the defendants worked in Belgium and are Belgian nationals.

According to the indictment, the charged individuals, on behalf of their companies, along with other co-conspirators, participated in a conspiracy to fix prices, rig bids and allocate customers for contracts to provide security services in Belgium, including contracts for the U.S. Department of Defense and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Those services included protecting military buildings and installations via the physical presence of guards, mobile monitoring and electronic surveillance. As part of the conspiracy, the conspirators agreed in advance which company would win certain security services contracts, and the price that each would bid for the contracts. As a result, the government received non-competitive and inflated bids, and was deprived of a competitive bidding process. The charged conspiracy began as early as spring 2019 and continued until as late as summer 2020.

The defendants are each charged with a violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine for individuals and a $100 million fine for corporations. The maximum fine for a Sherman Act charge may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime if either amount is greater than the statutory maximum fine.   

The Antitrust Division’s New York Office is prosecuting the case, which was investigated with the assistance of the FBI’s International Corruption Unit New York Field Office, the DCIS’ New York Resident Agency and the Transnational Operations Field Office, the U.S. Army CID’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit, and other PCSF partners in Europe. Special thanks to the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, and the Office of Inspector General for the Department of State for their assistance.

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. In fall 2020, the Strike Force expanded its footprint with the launch of PCSF: Global, which is designed to deter, detect, investigate and prosecute collusive schemes that target government spending outside of the United States.

To contact the PCSF, or to report information on market allocation, price fixing, bid rigging and other anticompetitive conduct related to the security services industry, go to https://www.justice.gov/procurement-collusion-strike-force.

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

華盛頓——今天，司法部宣布與本德堡縣（FBC）達成和解協議，以改善英語水平有限 （ LEP）的人的法庭使用情況。

該協議解決了司法部對以下指控的調查：FBC法院基於民族血統歧視 有限英語人士 （LEP ） 的法院用戶，並對投訴人進行報復，兩者都違反了《1964年民權法案》第六章。第六章禁止聯邦財政援助的接受者如 FBC進行種族、膚色或民族歧視。該部門的調查發現，語言障礙使LEP人士難以有效地使用法院系統。這些障礙包括要求LEP刑事被告在認罪程序中使用雙語律師而不是合格翻譯，以及在兒童監護案件中導致LEP父母的法庭費用增加的政策。

“當英語水平有限的人士面臨語言障礙，無法有效我們的司法系統時，他們可能會失去他們的孩子、家庭和基本權利，”民權司助理檢察長克里斯汀·克拉克（Kristen Clarke）表示。“民權司將繼續奮鬥到底，以確保法院消除使人們無法獲得平等司法的障礙。我讚揚本德堡縣採取必要的行動，確保法院用戶的語言使用權利，以遵守《民權法案》第六章 。”

“本德堡是我們地區最多樣化的縣之一，”德克薩斯州南部地區的代理美國檢察官馬克· 唐納利（Mark Donnelly）認為。“這項協議將確保每個人都能訴諸我們的法庭，而不論其民族血統或英語水平如何”。

根據該協議，FBC將在FBC法院的民事和刑事案件中免費為LEP個人提供翻譯服務。FBC法院還將在明年審查其語言訪問計劃，為FBC法院制定強制性的第六章培訓，提供第六章報復培訓，並發布公告，用非英語語言解釋第六章的非歧視政策和投訴程序。該部門將對這些要求和其他要求進行為期兩年的監測。FBC還同意向LEP法庭使用者支付法庭費用和向聲稱受到報復的人士支付賠償金。

執行第六章是民權處的首要任務。有關民權處的其他信息可在其網站 www.justice.gov/crt 找到，有關英語水平有限和第六章的信息可在 www.lep.gov 找到。公眾可以通過 https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/ 舉報可能侵犯其公民權利的行為。

华盛顿——司法部今日宣布与本德堡县 (FBC) 达成和解协议，以改善英语能力有限 (LEP) 人士获取司法服务的机会。

该协议结束了司法部对 FBC 法院存在针对 LEP 司法服务对象的基于国籍的歧视，并报复投诉人的指控的调查，这两项指控均违反了 1964 年《民权法案》第六章。第六章禁止联邦财政援助接受方（如 FBC）进行基于种族、肤色或国籍的歧视。司法部的调查发现语言障碍使 LEP 人士难以有效地使用司法系统的服务。语言障碍包括要求 LEP 刑事被告在认罪程序中使用双语律师而非合格口译员，以及导致 LEP 父母在儿童监护案件中需要支付更高法庭费用的政策。

民权司助理司法部长克里斯汀·克拉克 (Kristen Clarke) 说：“英语水平有限的人在面临语言障碍，无法有效使用司法系统时，可能会失去孩子、家庭和自身的基本权利。民权司将继续努力确保法院消除阻碍人们获得平等司法的障碍。 我赞扬本德堡县采取的必要行动，确保司法服务对象能够根据《民权法》第六章获得语言支持。”

“本德堡是我们地区最多元化的县之一，”德克萨斯州南区美国联邦代理检察官马克·唐纳利（Mark Donnelly）说。 “该协议将确保每个人，无论其国籍或英语水平如何都可以使用我们的司法服务。” 

根据该协议，FBC 将在其法院的民事和刑事案件中为 LEP 个人免费提供口译服务。FBC 法院还将在明年审查其语言服务计划，制定针对《民权法案》第六章的强制性培训，提供第六条下报复行为的培训，并发布用非英语语言解释第六条非歧视政策和投诉程序的公告。司法部将监测以上计划和其他要求的执行情况，为期两年。 FBC 还同意向 LEP 个人支付诉讼费用的赔偿金，以及向涉嫌受到报复行为的个人支付赔偿金。 

《民权法案》第六章的执行是民权司的首要任务。 关于民权司的更多信息可在其网站 www.justice.gov/crt 上获得，有关英语能力限制和第六章的信息可在 www.lep.gov 上获得。 公众可以在 https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/ 投诉任何可能侵犯其民权的行为。

Download Malayalam DOJ FBC MOA Press Release

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वाश िंगटन - जस्टिस शिपाटटमेंट ने आज सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता (LEP) वाले लोगोिं के शलए न्यायालयोिं तक पहिंच में सुधार के शलए फोटट बेंि काउिंटी (FBC) के साथ एक समझौते की घोषणा की। 

यह समझौता उन आरोपोिं के शलए जस्टिस शिपाटटमेंट की जािंच का समाधान करता है शजसमें कहा गया था शक FBC न्यायालयोिं ने सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता वाले न्यायालय उपयोगकताटओिं के साथ उनके राष्ट्र ीय मूल के आधार पर भेदभाव शकया और एक श कायतकताट के स्टिलाफ प्रशत ोधात्मक कारटवाई की, ये दोनोिं ही आरोप 1964 के शसशवल राइट्स एक्ट के  ीषटक VI का उल्लिंघन करते हैं।  ीषटक VI में FBC जैसी सिंघीय शवत्तीय सहायता के प्राप्तकताटओिं द्वारा नस्ल, रिंग या राष्ट्र ीय मूल के आधार पर भेदभाव को प्रशतबिंशधत शकया गया है। शवभाग की जााँच ने भाषा अवरोधोिं को उजागर शकया जो सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता वाले लोगोिं के शलए न्यायालय प्रणाली को अथटपूणट ढिंग से एक्सेस करना कशिन बनाते हैं। इन अवरोधोिं में ऐसी आवश्यकताएिं  ाशमल थी शजसके अनुसार सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता वाले आपराशधक प्रशतवादी के शलए याशचका कायटवाही में योग्य दुभाशषया के बजाय शद्वभाषी वकील का उपयोग करना जरूरी था, और ऐसी नीशतयािं थीिं शजसके पररणामस्वरूप बाल शहरासत मामलोिं में सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता वाले माता-शपता के शलए न्यायालय के िचट उच्चतर हो जाते थे। 

शसशवल राइट्स शिवीजन के सहायक अटॉनी जनरल शििन क्लाकट ने कहा, "सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता वाले लोग अपने बच्चोिं, घरोिं और मौशलक अशधकारोिं के नुकसान का सामना कर सकते हैं, जब वे भाषा सिंबिंधी बाधाओिं का सामना करते हैं जो हमारी न्याशयक प्रणाली तक साथटक पहिंच से विंशचत करते हैं।" " शसशवल राइट्स शिवीजन यह सुशनशित करने के शलए सिंघषट जारी रिेगा शक न्यायालय उन बाधाओिं को दू र करें जो लोगोिं को समान न्याय तक पहिंच से विंशचत करती हैं। शसशवल राइट्स एक्टके  ीषटक VI के अनुपालन में न्यायालय के उपयोगकताटओिं के शलए भाषा की पहिंच सुशनशित करने के शलए आवश्यक कारटवाई करने पर मैं फोटट बेंि काउिंटी की सराहना करती हिं।" 

"फोटट बेंि हमारे शजले में सबसे शवशवधतापूणट काउिंशटयोिं में से एक है," टेक्सास के दशक्षणी शजले के शलए कायटवाहक अमेररकी अटॉनी माकट िोनेली ने कहा। "यह समझौता सुशनशित करेगा शक राष्ट्र ीय मूल या सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता के बावजूद सभी व्यस्टियोिं की पहिंच हमारे न्यायालयोिं तक हो।" 

समझौते के तहत, FBC न्यायालयोिं में दीवानी और आपराशधक मामलोिं में सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता वाले व्यस्टियोिं को मुफ्त दुभाशषया सेवाएिं प्रदान करेगा। FBC न्यायालय अगले वषट अपनी भाषा पहिंच योजनाओिं की समीक्षा करेंगी, FBC न्यायालयोिं के शलए अशनवायट  ीषटक VI प्रश क्षण शवकशसत करेंगी,  ीषटक VI प्रशत ोध प्रश क्षण देंगी, और सावटजशनक नोशटस जारी करेंगी जो गैर-अिंग्रेजी भाषाओिं में  ीषटक VI की गैर-भेदभाव नीशत और श कायत प्रशिया की व्याख्या करती हैं। शवभाग के द्वारा इन और अन्य आवश्यकताओिं की दो वषट तक शनगरानी की जाएगी। FBC ने सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता वाले उपयोगकताट को न्यायालय के िचों के शलए और प्रशत ोध का आरोप लगाने वाले व्यस्टि को हजाटने का भुगतान करने पर भी सहमशत व्यि की। 

 ीषटक VI को लागू करना शसशवल राइट्स शिवीजन की सवोच्च प्राथशमकता है। शसशवल राइट्स शिवीजन के बारे में अशतररि जानकारी उनकी वेबसाइट www.justice.gov/crt पर उपलब्ध है और सीशमत अिंग्रेजी दक्षता तथा  ीषटक VI के बारे में जानकारी www.lep.gov पर उपलब्ध है। जनता नागररक अशधकारोिं के सिंभाशवत उल्लिंघन की ररपोटट https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/ पर कर सकते हैं। 

واﺷﻧﮕﭨن – آج ﻣﺣﮑﻣہ ِ اﻧﺻﺎف ﻧﮯ ﻓورٹ ﺑﯾﻧڈ ﮐﺎؤﻧﭨﯽ )Fort Bend County, FBC( ﮐﮯﺳﺎﺗﮭ اﯾﮏ ﺗﺻﻔﯾﮯ ﮐﮯ ﻣُﻌﺎﮨدے ﮐﺎ اﻋﻼن ﮐﯾﺎ ﺗﺎﮐہ اﻧﮕرﯾزی زﺑﺎن ﮐﯽ ﻣﺣدود ﺻﻼﺣﯾت (limited English proficiency, LEP) رﮐﮭﻧﮯ واﻟﮯ اﻓراد ﮐﮯ ﻟﯾﮯ ﻋداﻟت ﺗﮏ رﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﮐو ﺑﮩﺗر ﺑﻧﺎﯾﺎ ﺟﺎﺋﮯ۔ 

ﯾہ ﻣﻌﺎﮨده ﻣﺣﮑﻣہ ِ اﻧﺻﺎف ﮐﯽ ان اﻟزاﻣﺎت ﮐﮯ ﻣﺗﻌﻠﻖ ﺗﻔﺗﯾش ﮐو ﺗﮑﻣﯾل ﺗﮏ ﭘﮩﻧﭼﺎﺗﺎ ﮨﮯ ﮐہ FBC ﮐﯽ ﻋداﻟﺗوں ﻧﮯ ﻋداﻟت ﮐﮯ LEP ﺻﺎرﻓﯾن ﮐﮯ ﺧﻼف اُن ﮐﯽ آﺑﺎﺋﯽ ﻗوﻣﯾت ﮐﯽ ﺑﻧﯾﺎد ﭘر ﺗﻔرﯾﻖ ﮐﯽ اور اﯾﮏ ﺷﮑﺎﯾت ﮐُﻧﻧده ﮐﮯ ﺧِ ﻼف اﻧﺗﻘﺎﻣﯽ ﮐﺎرواﺋﯽ ﮐﯽ، ﯾہ دوﻧوں اﻗداﻣﺎت 1964ء ﮐﮯ ﺳِول راﺋﭨس اﯾﮑٹ ﮐﮯ ﭨﺎﺋﭨل VI ﮐﯽ ﺧِ ﻼف ورزی ﮨﯾں۔ ﭨﺎﺋﭨل VI وﻓﺎﻗﯽ ﻣﺎﻟﯽ ﻣﻌﺎوﻧت ﮐﮯ وﺻُول ﮐُﻧﻧدﮔﺎن، ﺟﯾﺳﮯ FBC، ﮐﯽ ﺟﺎﻧب ﺳﮯ ﻧﺳل، رﻧﮓ ﯾﺎ آﺑﺎﺋﯽ ﻗوﻣﯾت ﮐﯽ ﺑُﻧﯾﺎد ﭘرﺗﻔرﯾﻖ ﮐﯾﮯ ﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﮐﯽ ﻣُﻣﺎﻧﻌت ﮐرﺗﺎ ﮨﮯ۔ ﻣﺣﮑﻣﮯ ﮐﯽ ﺗﻔﺗﯾش ﺳﮯ اﯾﺳﯽ ﻟﺳﺎﻧﯽ رُﮐﺎوﭨوں ﮐﺎ اﻧﮑﺷﺎف ﮨوا ﺟو LEP ﻓوﺟداری ﻣدﻋﺎ ﻋﻠﯾﮩﺎن ﮐﮯ ﻟﯾﮯ ﻋداﻟﺗﯽ ﻧظﺎم ﺗﮏ ﺻﺣﯾﺢ ﻣﻌﻧوں ﻣﯾں رﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﺣﺎﺻِ ل ﮐرﻧﮯ ﮐو ﻣﺷﮑل ﺑﻧﺎﺗﯽ ﮨﯾں۔ اِن رُﮐﺎوﭨوں ﻣﯾں اﯾﺳﯽ ﺷراﺋط ﺷﺎﻣل ﺗﮭﯾں ﮐہ درﺧواﺳت ﭘر ﮐﺎرواﺋﯽ ﮐﮯ دوران LEP ﻓوﺟداری ﻣدﻋﺎ ﻋﻠﯾﮩﺎن اﯾﮏ ﻣﺳﺗﻧد ﺗرﺟُﻣﺎن ﮐﮯ ﺑﺟﺎﺋﮯ دو زﺑﺎﻧﯾں ﺑوﻟﻧﮯ واﻟﮯ وﮐﯾل ﮐﯽ ﺧدﻣﺎت ﺣﺎﺻل ﮐرﯾں اور اﯾﺳﯽ ﭘﺎﻟﯾﺳﯾﺎں ﺟن ﮐﮯ ﻧﺗﯾﺟﮯ ﻣﯾں LEP واﻟدﯾن ﮐﮯ ﻟﯾﮯ ﺑﭼوں ﮐﯽ ﺗﺣوﯾل ﮐﮯ ﻣﻘدﻣﺎت ﮐﮯ ﻋداﻟﺗﯽ اﺧراﺟﺎت ﺑڑھ ﺟﺎﺗﮯ ﺗﮭﮯ۔ 

اﻧﮕرﯾزی زﺑﺎن ﮐﯽ ﻣﺣدود ﺻﻼﺣﯾت رﮐﮭﻧﮯ واﻟﮯ اﻓراد اﭘﻧﮯ ﺑﭼّوں، ﮔﮭروں اور ﺑُﻧﯾﺎدی ﺣﻘوق ﮐﮭوﻧﮯ ﮐﺎ ﻧُﻘﺻﺎن اُﭨﮭﺎ ﺳﮑﺗﮯ ﮨﯾں ﺟب اُﻧﮩﯾں اﯾﺳﯽ ﻟِﺳﺎﻧﯽ رُﮐﺎوﭨوں ﮐﺎ ﺳﺎﻣﻧﺎ ﮨوﺗﺎ ﮨﮯ ﺟو ﮨﻣﺎرے ﻗﺎﻧوﻧﯽ ﻧظﺎم ﺗﮏ ﺻﺣﯾﺢ ﻣﻌﻧوں ﻣﯾں رﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﮨوﻧﮯ 
ﺳﮯ ﻣﺣروم ﮐر دﯾﺗﯽ ﮨﯾں،" ﯾہ ﺑﺎت ﺳِول راﺋﭨس ڈوﯾژن ﮐﯽ اﺳﺳﭨﻧٹ اﭨﺎرﻧﯽ ﺟﻧرل ﮐرﺳﭨن ﮐﻼرک ﻧﮯ ﮐﯽ۔ "ﺳِول راﺋﭨس ڈوﯾژن اس ﺑﺎت ﮐو ﯾﻘﯾﻧﯽ ﺑﻧﺎﻧﮯ ﮐﮯ ﻟﯾﮯ اﭘﻧﯽ ﺟﻧﮓ ﺟﺎری رﮐّﮭﮯ ﮔﺎ ﮐہ ﻋداﻟﺗﯾں اﯾﺳﯽ رُﮐﺎوﭨوں ﮐو دُور ﮐرﯾں ﺟو ﻟوﮔوں ﮐو ﯾﮑﺳﺎں اﻧﺻﺎف ﺗﮏ رﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﺳﮯ ﻣﺣروم ﮐرﺗﯽ ﮨﯾں۔ ﻣﯾں ﻓورٹ ﺑﯾﻧڈ ﮐﺎؤﻧﭨﯽ ﮐﯽ اﯾﺳﮯ ﺿروری اﻗداﻣﺎت ﮐرﻧﮯ ﭘر ﺗﻌرﯾف ﮐرﺗﯽ ﮨُوں ﺟو ﺳِول راﺋﭨس اﯾﮑٹ ﮐﮯ ﭨﺎﺋﭨل VI ﮐﯽ ﺗﻌﻣﯾل ﻣﯾں ﻋداﻟﺗﯽ ﺻﺎرﻓﯾن ﮐو ﻟِﺳﺎﻧﯽ رﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﻣِﻠﻧﮯ ﮐو ﯾﻘﯾﻧﯽ ﺑﻧﺎﺗﮯ ﮨﯾں۔" 

ﻓورٹ ﺑﯾﻧڈ ﮨﻣﺎری ڈﺳﭨرﮐٹ ﻣﯾں ﺳب ﺳﮯ زﯾﺎده ﻣﺗﻧوع ﮐﺎؤﻧﭨﯾز ﻣﯾں ﺳﮯ اﯾﮏ ﮨﮯ،" ﯾہ ﺑﺎت ﭨﯾﮑﺳﺎس ﮐﯽ ﺟﻧوﺑﯽ ڈﺳﭨرﮐٹ 
ﮐﮯ ﻗﺎﺋم ﻣﻘﺎم اﻣرﯾﮑﯽ اﭨﺎرﻧﯽ ﻣﺎرک ڈوﻧﯾﻠﯽ ﻧﮯ ﮐﮩﯽ۔ "ﯾہ ﻣُﻌﺎﮨده اِس ﺑﺎت ﮐو ﯾﻘﯾﻧﯽ ﺑﻧﺎﺋﮯ ﮔﺎ ﮐہ آﺑﺎﺋﯽ ﻗوﻣﯾت ﯾﺎ اﻧﮕرﯾزی
زﺑﺎن ﮐﯽ ﻣﺣدود ﻗﺎﺑﻠﯾت ﺳﮯ ﻗطﻊ ﻧظر ﮨر اﯾﮏ ﮐو ﮨﻣﺎری ﻋداﻟﺗوں ﺗﮏ رﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﺣﺎﺻل ﮨو۔

اِس ﻣُﻌﺎﮨدے ﮐﮯ ﺗﺣت FBC ﮐﯽ ﻋداﻟﺗوں ﻣﯾں دﯾواﻧﯽ اور ﻓوﺟداری ﻣُﻘدّﻣﺎت ﻣﯾں LEP اﻓراد ﮐو ﺗرﺟُﻣﺎﻧﯽ ﮐﯽ ﺧِ دﻣﺎت FBC ﻣﻔت ﻓراﮨم ﮐرے ﮔﺎ۔ FBC ﮐﯽ ﻋداﻟﺗﯾں اﮔﻠﮯ ﺳﺎل ﺑﮭر ﻣﯾں اﭘﻧﮯ ﻟﺳﺎﻧﯽ رﺳﺎﺋﯽ ﮐﮯﻣﻧﺻوﺑوں ﮐﺎ ﺟﺎﺋزه ﺑﮭﯽ ﻟﯾں ﮔﯽ، FBC ﮐﯽ ﻋداﻟﺗوں ﮐﮯ ﻟﯾﮯ ﭨﺎﺋﭨل VI ﮐﯽ ﻻزﻣﯽ ﺗرﺑﯾت ﻣرﺗب ﮐرﯾں ﮔﯽ، اﻧﺗﻘﺎﻣﯽ ﮐﺎرواﺋﯽ ﮐﮯ ﺣواﻟﮯ ﺳﮯ ﭨﺎﺋﭨل VI ﮐﯽ ﺗرﺑﯾت ﻓراﮨم ﮐرﯾں ﮔﯽ اور ﻋواﻣﯽ ﻧوﭨﺳوں ﮐﺎ اﺟرا ﮐرﯾں ﮔﯽ ﺟو ﮐہ ﭨﺎﺋﭨل VI ﮐﯽ ﺗﻔرﯾﻖ ﮐﮯ ﺧﻼف ﭘﺎﻟﯾﺳﯽ اور ﺷﮑﺎﯾت ﮐﮯ ﻋﻣل ﮐﯽ اﻧﮕرﯾزی ﮐﮯ ﻋﻼوه زﺑﺎﻧوں ﻣﯾں وﺿﺎﺣت ﮐرﯾں ﮔﮯ۔ ﻣﺣﮑﻣہ اِن ﺷراﺋط اور دﯾﮕر ﺷراﺋط ﮐﯽ دو ﺳﺎل ﺗﮏ 

ﻧِﮕراﻧﯽ ﮐرے ﮔﺎ۔ FBC ﻧﮯ اﯾﮏ LEP ﻋداﻟﺗﯽ ﺻﺎرف اور اﯾﮏ اور ﻓرد ﺟس ﻧﮯ اﻧﺗﻘﺎﻣﯽ ﮐﺎرواﺋﯽ ﮐﺎ اﻟزام ﻋﺎﺋد ﮐﯾﺎ ﺗﮭﺎ، ﮐو ﻋداﻟﺗﯽ اﺧراﺟﺎت ﮐﯽ ﻣد ﻣﯾں ﮨرﺟﺎﻧﮯ ﮐﯽ اداﺋﯾﮕﯽ ﮐرﻧﮯ ﭘر ﺑﮭﯽ اﺗﻔﺎق ﮐﯾﺎ۔ 

ﭨل VI ﮐﺎ ﻧِﻔﺎذ ﺳِول راﺋﭨس ڈوﯾژن ﮐﯽ اوّ ﻟﯾن ﺗرﺟﯾﺣﺎت ﻣﯾں ﺳﮯ ﮨﮯ۔ ﺳِول راﺋﭨس ڈوﯾژن ﮐﮯ ﺑﺎرے ﻣﯾں اِﺿﺎﻓﯽ 
ﻣﻌﻠوﻣﺎت اِس ﮐﯽ وﯾب ﺳﺎﺋٹ www.justice.gov/crt ﭘر دﺳﺗﯾﺎب ﮨﯾں، اور اﻧﮕرﯾزی ﮐﯽ ﻣﺣدود ﺻﻼﺣﯾت اور ﭨﺎﺋﭨل VI ﮐﮯ ﻣﺗﻌﻠﻖ ﻣزﯾد ﻣﻌﻠوﻣﺎت www.lep.gov ﭘر دﺳﺗﯾﺎب ﮨﯾں۔ ﻋوام اﻟﻧﺎس ﺷﮩری ﺣﻘوق ﮐﯽ ﻣﻣﮑﻧہ ﺧﻼف ورزﯾوں ﮐﯽ رﭘورٹ https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/ ﭘر ﮐر ﺳﮑﺗﮯ ﮨﯾں۔

Download Arabic DOJ FBC MOA Press Release

Yesterday, in federal court in Brooklyn, Shmuel Gali was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto to 60 months’ imprisonment for his role in a long-running odometer tampering and money laundering scheme and ordered to pay $3,936,000 in restitution. The defendant pleaded guilty in August 2020 to conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit odometer tampering, making false odometer statements and securities fraud.

“An automobile is one of the biggest purchases many consumers make,” stated Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Misrepresenting used car mileages defrauds buyers and hides important information concerning safety and reliability. The Department of Justice will continue to work with law enforcement partners to prosecute odometer fraud.”

“This sentence sends a warning that this office will prosecute those who engage in odometer tampering and deliberately dupe consumers into unknowingly paying inflated prices for their motor vehicles,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn M. Kasulis for the Eastern District of New York. “With the defendant being sentenced to prison and ordered to pay restitution to his victims, he is being held to account for his greed in contriving this fraudulent scheme.”

“Automobile sales stand as one of the pillars of the American economy, requiring transparency and integrity,” said Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Thomas Fattorusso of IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). “The financial expertise of IRS-CI was needed to uncover this criminal enterprise perpetuated by Shmuel Gali who received a just sentence relative to his criminal activity.”

Between 2006 and June 2011, Shmuel Gali, while conspiring with his brother Chaim, defrauded buyers of used motor vehicles by misrepresenting the mileage of approximately 690 vehicles that they sold. They used fictitious dealer names to purchase high-mileage, used motor vehicles from a national vehicle-leasing company; altered the odometers of the vehicles to reflect false, lower mileages; and then sold the vehicles at wholesale automobile auctions. On average, the odometers on the vehicles were rolled back by close to 70,000 miles. Consumers who purchased the vehicles at dealerships did not know the true mileage and paid inflated sales prices. 

This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation and IRS-CI.

Senior Litigation Counsel Linda I. Marks of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine M. Mirabile of the Eastern District of New York prosecuted the case.

NHTSA estimates that odometer fraud in the United States results in consumer losses of more than $1 billion annually. Individuals with information relating to odometer tampering should call NHTSA’s odometer fraud hotline at (800) 424-9393 or (202) 366-4761. More information on odometer fraud is available on the NHTSA website at https://www.nhtsa.gov/odometer-fraud.

A former commodities trader was sentenced Monday to 12 months and a day in prison for a scheme to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution.

Cedric Chanu, 42, of France and the United Arab Emirates, was convicted by a federal jury on Sept. 25, 2020. Based on the evidence presented at trial, Chanu, who was employed as a precious metals trader at Deutsche Bank in Singapore and, later in London, engaged in a scheme to defraud other traders on the Commodity Exchange Inc., which was a public exchange. The defendant, together with James Vorley and other Deutsche Bank traders, defrauded other market participants through a deceptive trading practice known as “spoofing.” Specifically, Chanu placed fraudulent orders that he did not intend to execute in order to create the false appearance of supply and demand and to induce other traders to transact at prices, quantities, and times that they otherwise would not have traded. Vorley was sentenced on June 21, also to 12 months and a day in prison.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicholas L. McQuaid of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Assistant Director in Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. of the FBI’s New York Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI’s New York Field Office investigated the case.

Deputy Chief Brian Young, Acting Principal Assistant Chief Avi Perry, and Trial Attorney Leslie S. Garthwaite of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.

WASHINGTON – Sa araw na ito, inanunsiyo ng Kagawaran ng Katarungan (Justice Department) ang kasunduan sa pag-aayos sa Fort Bend County (FBC) para mapahusay ang pag-access sa korte ng mga taong may limitadong kakayahan sa Ingles (English proficiency, LEP). 

Nilulutas ng kasuduang ito ang imbestigasyon ng Kagawaran ng Katarungan sa mga bintang na ang mga korte ng FBC ay nagdiskrimina laban sa mga LEP na gumagamit ng korte batay sa kanilang bansang pinagmulan at naghiganti laban sa isang nagreklamo, na parehong paglabag sa Titulo VI ng Batas ng mga Karapatang Sibil ng 1964 (Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964). Ipinagbabawal ng Titulo VI ang diskriminasyon sa lahi, kulay o bansang pinagmulan ng mga tumatanggap ng mga pederal na tulong pampinansiyal, tulad ng FBC.  Natuklasan sa imbestigasyon ng kagawaran ang mga hadlang sa wika na nagpapahirap sa mga taong LEP na magkaroon ng makahulugang access sa sistema ng korte. Kasama sa mga hadlang na ito ang mga kailangan na ang mga nasasakdal sa isang krimen ay gumamit ng bilingual na abogado sa halip na kwalipikadong tagapagsalin sa mga plea proceeding, at mga patakaran na nagresulta sa mas mahal na bayarin sa korte para sa mga magulang na LEP sa mga kaso ng kustodiya ng anak. 

“Ang mga taong may limitadong kakayahan sa Ingles ay maaaring dumanas ng pagkawala ng kanilang anak, tahanan, at pangunahing karapatan kapag humarap sila sa mga hadlang sa wika na nagkakait ng makahulugang access sa ating sistemang panghukuman.” ayon kay Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke para sa Sangay para sa mga Karapatang Sibil (Civil Rights Division). “Ipagpapatuloy ng Sangay para sa mga Karapatang Sibil ang paglaban para matiyak na tatanggalin ng mga korte ang mga hadlang na nagkakait sa mga tao ng access sa pantay-pantay na katarungan. Aking pinupuri ang Fort Bend County sa pagsasagawa ng mga kinakailangang hakbang nito para matiyak ang access sa wika para sa mga gumagamit ng korte alinsunod sa Titulo VI ng Batas sa mga Karapatang Sibil (Title VI of the Civil Rights Act).”  

“Ang Fort Bend ay isa sa magkakaibang county sa ating Distrito,” ayon kay Acting U.S. Attorney Mark Donnelly para sa Southern District of Texas. “Ang kasunduang ito ang titiyak na ang bawat tao ay may access sa ating mga korte maging saan mang bansa nagmula o limitadong kahusayan sa Ingles.”  

Sa ilalim ng kasunduan, magbibigay ang FBC ng mga serbisyo ng tagapagsalin nang walang bayad sa mga LEP na indibidwal sa mga kasong sibil at kriminal sa mga korte ng FBC. Pag-aaralan rin ng mga korte ng FBC ang mga plano sa pag-access sa wika sa susunod na taon, bubuo ng sapilitang pagsasanay sa Titulo IV para sa mga korte ng FBC, magbibigay ng pagsasanay sa paghihiganti na nasa Titulo IV at maglalabas ng mga abiso sa publiko na nagpapaliwanag sa patakaran sa walang diskriminasyon na nasa Titulo IV at proseso ng pagreklamo sa mga wikang hindi Ingles. Babantayan ng kagawaran ng dalawang taon ang mga ito at mga ibang kailangan. Sumang-ayon rin ang FBC na magbabayad ng mga danyos sa isang LEP na gumamit ng korte para sa mga gastusin sa korte at sa isang indibidwal na nagbintang ng paghihiganti.   

Pangunahing prayoridad ng Sangay para sa mga Karapatang Sibil ang pagpapatupad ng Titulo VI. Ang mga karagdagang impormasyon tungkol sa Sangay para sa mga Karapatang Sibil ay matatagpuan sa website nito sa www.justice.gov/crt, at  ang mga impormasyon tungkol sa limitadong kakayahan sa Ingles at Titulo VI ay matatagpuan din sa www.lep.gov.  Ang mga miyembro ng publiko ay maaaring magsumbong ng mga posibleng paglabag sa mga karapatang sibil sa https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/.

The Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) announced that the United States has filed a civil lawsuit in the Southern District of Florida against Fane Lozman for violations of the Rivers and Harbors Act (RHA) in connection with Mr. Lozman’s obstruction of Lake Worth Lagoon, a navigable waterway, in Riviera Beach, Florida.

According to the Complaint filed on June 25, Lozman or persons acting at his direction constructed and/or installed structures in Lake Worth Lagoon, which is connected to the Atlantic Ocean and the largest estuary in Palm Beach County.  Some of the structures are made of closed-cell polystyrene foam and concrete blocks and range from 30 to 100 feet long, with various materials attached to the structures (including a metal shipping container).  In at least three separate incidents, one or more of Lozman’s unauthorized structures became unmoored and drifted into Lake Worth Lagoon creating increased risk to navigation, property, and public safety. The United States seeks an order to enjoin Lozman from further building or installing obstructions in waters of the United States, except in compliance with the RHA, and to compel him to remove the unauthorized structures from Lake Worth Lagoon. 

The matter was referred to the Department by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District.  The Corps issued a notice of violation and order to cease and desist in connection with Lozman’s actions earlier this year. 

This case is being handled by ENRD’s Environmental Defense Section. Trial Attorneys Brandon N. Adkins and Sydney A. Menees are in charge of the case.