Southern District of Ohio

DAYTON – Daryl Ian Evans, 36, of Dayton, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 60 months in prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, and Dayton Police Chief Richard S. Biehl announced the sentence handed down today by U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

 

According to court documents, Dayton Police found Evans in possession of four firearms while executing a search warrant on Eleanor Street in Dayton in January 2018.

 

Evans possessed the firearms in connection with drug trafficking. Police also found heroin, cocaine, marijuana and $10,000 in cash at the residence.

 

Evans had been previously convicted in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court for attempted possession of cocaine and domestic violence.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation by the FBI and Dayton Police, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Andrew J. Hunt, who is representing the United States in this case. 

 

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

 

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – A jury has convicted Glenn Marcell Madison, Jr., 29, of Columbus, on all counts following a two-day trial before U.S. District Judge James L. Graham.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin and Columbus Interim Chief of Police Thomas A. Quinlan announced the verdict returned yesterday evening.

 

Madison, also known as “Monster,” was indicted in October 2018 and May 2019 and charged with six drug-related crimes.

 

He was convicted of two counts of distributing cocaine, one count of distributing heroin and one count of distributing methamphetamine; each are crimes punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Madison was also convicted of two counts of distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, which carries a potential sentence of five to 40 years in prison.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the Columbus Division of Police and Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin W. Kelley and Noah R. Litton, who are representing the United States in this case. 

 

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DAYTON – Robert W. Stroud, 45, of Houston, Texas was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 12 years in prison for crimes related to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and violating supervised release from an earlier conviction.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), announced the sentence handed down on Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

 

According to court documents, from between September 2016 and June 2017, Stroud conspired with others to possess with intent to distribute more than 15 kilograms of cocaine in the Southern District of Ohio and elsewhere. Among his acts, on June 15, 2017, Stroud coordinated with a supplier to obtain nearly five kilograms of cocaine near Chicago.

 

In furtherance of the scheme, co-defendant Jordan Smith drove from Dayton to Bolingbrook, Ill. on June 15, 2017, and thereafter met with the supplier at Stroud’s direction and with money provided by Stroud. Smith gave the money to the supplier, and in return Smith took possession of the roughly five kilograms of cocaine. Police seized the drugs a short time later when they conducted a traffic stop of Smith in Illinois.

 

Stroud committed this offense while serving a term of supervised release arising from a 2009 firearm conviction in U.S. District Court in Cincinnati. His aggregate 12 year prison sentence is based upon an 11 year prison sentence for the new conspiracy offense, and one additional year for the supervised release violation. Judge Rice also imposed a $10,000 fine.

 

Co-defendants Jordan Smith and Kenneth Thompkins have also pleaded guilty in relation to this case and await sentencing.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation by the DEA, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Michael J. Hunter and Andrew J. Hunt, who represent the United States in this case. 

 

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The Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio today announced the filing of a lawsuit against Ohio-based Miller-Valentine Operations Inc. and affiliated companies, owners, developers and builders of 82 multifamily housing complexes located in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants failed to design and construct housing units and related facilities to make them accessible to persons with disabilities in compliance with the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The 82 complexes contain more than 3,000 units that are required by the FHA to have accessible features, and most contain public spaces that are required to comply with the ADA. 

According to the government’s complaint, the defendants built many of the complexes with the assistance of federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits or with the financial assistance of other federal government programs.

“For over two decades federal laws have required multifamily housing complexes to be built with accessible features,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband.  “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting the rights of persons with disabilities to equal access to housing opportunities, including accessible dwellings and related facilities.”

“We’re in the business of enforcing federal civil rights laws to their fullest extent,” said U.S. Attorney Glassman. “It doesn’t matter to us whether the defendant is an individual in a single neighborhood or, as here, a company operating in many states. The complaint that the United States filed today alleges not only that Miller-Valentine designed and built multi-family housing complexes that are not accessible to people with disabilities, but also that Miller-Valentine took public money to build those complexes and yet still built them such that some citizens wouldn’t be able to live there.”

The lawsuit, which was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, alleges that the 82 properties have significant accessibility barriers, including steps leading to building entrances; non-existent or excessively sloped pedestrian routes from apartment units to site amenities (e.g., picnic areas, dumpsters, clubhouse/leasing offices); inaccessible parking; inaccessible bathrooms and kitchens; inaccessible door hardware; and insufficient maneuvering space at unit entrances and entrances to common use areas that make those entrances inaccessible to many people with disabilities.

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

Illinois

• Twin Lakes Senior Villas, Rantoul, IL

Indiana

• Honey Creek, Greenwood, IN
• Mill Pond, Muncie, IN
• Summit Pointe, Lawrenceburg, IN
• Waterbury Apartments, Decatur, IN

Iowa

• Meadow Vista Senior Villas, Altoona, IA

Kansas

• Galena Estates, Galena, KS

Kentucky

• Weaver Farm Apartments, Florence, KY

Missouri

• Hampshire Landing, Joplin, MO

North Carolina

• Madison Place Senior, Gastonia, NC
• Pinecrest Apartments, Walkertown, NC
• River Crossing, Charlotte, NC
• The Enclave at Winston-Salem, Winston-Salem, NC
• The Landings at Steele Creek I, Charlotte, NC
• The Landings at Steele Creek II, Charlotte, NC
• Twin Cedars I, Hickory, NC
• Twin Cedars II, Hickory, NC
• Villas at Twin Cedars, Hickory, NC

Ohio

• Aspen Grove Apartments, Middletown, OH
• Bent Tree Apartments I, Piqua, OH
• Bent Tree Apartments II, Piqua, OH
• Breckenridge Apartments, Findlay, OH
• Bridge Street Landing, Chillicothe, OH
• Brookdale Trillium Crossing, Columbus, OH
• Brookstone Apartments, Bellefontaine, OH
• Carriage Trails Senior Villas, Huber Heights, OH
• Cedar Trail, Bellbrook, OH
• Cedar Wood Apartments, Mansfield, OH
• Cobblegate Square Apartments, Moraine, OH
• Deerfield Crossing, Lebanon, OH
• Eagles Point Apartments, Kenton, OH
• Faith Community Housing, Crestline, OH
• Fox Run, Trotwood, OH
• Glen Arbors Apartments, Napoleon, OH
• Harbour Cove Apartments, Cincinnati, OH
• Harmony Senior Village, Williamsburg, OH
• Holly Hills Apartments, Jackson, OH
• Hoover Place, Dayton, OH
• Hunter’s Oak Apartments, Greenville, OH
• Indian Trace I, Oxford, OH
• Indian Trace II, Oxford, OH
• Lake Towne Senior, Walbridge, OH
• Lofts at Hoover, Dayton, OH
• Lofts at One West High Street, Oxford, OH
• Lyons Place I, Dayton, OH
• Lyons Place II, Dayton, OH
• Mallard Glen, Amelia, OH
• Mallard Landing, Marion, OH
• Meadow Creek Apartments, Bryan, OH
• Meadow View South, Springboro, OH
• Oak Wood Apartments, Lexington, OH
• Pheasant Run Senior, Dayton, OH
• Pine Ridge, Logan, OH
• Quail Run Apartments, Van Wert, OH
• Queen Esther’s Village, Canton, OH
• Riverside Landing at Delaware Place, Delaware, OH
• Riverview Bluffs, New Richmond, OH
• Sandhurst, Zanesville, OH
• Scioto Woods I, Chillicothe, OH
• Scioto Woods II, Chillicothe, OH
• Siena Village Senior Living, Dayton, OH
• St. Bernard Commons, St. Bernard, OH
• St. Rita’s Senior Housing, Garfield Heights, OH
• Stone Creek Apartments, Moraine, OH
• Sycamore Creek Apartments, Sidney, OH
• Timber Glen II, Batavia, OH
• Timber Ridge Apartments, Dayton, OH
• Timberlake Apartments, Vandalia, OH
• Walnut Run Senior Villas, Cortland, OH
• Waterstone Landing, Perrysburg, OH
• Whitehouse Square Senior Villas, Whitehouse, OH
• Wind Ridge Apartments, Tipp City, OH
• Windsor Place, Beavercreek, OH
• Wright Place Apartments, Xenia, OH

Oklahoma

• Fairway Breeze Apartments, El Reno, OK
• Reserve at Spencer, Spencer, OK

Pennsylvania

• Allegheny Pointe, Apollo, PA
• Walkers Ridge Apartments, Greensburg, PA

Texas

• Gallatin Park Apartments, Gallatin, TX
• Oak Ridge Apartments, Nolanville, TX
• Silversage Point at Western Center, Fort Worth, TX

West Virginia

• Reserve at Oak Spring, Clarksburg, WV

Anyone with information about the inaccessible conditions at these properties should call the Department of Justice at 1-800-896-7743, and follow the prompts to enter mailbox number 9996, or send an e-mail to fairhousing@usdoj.gov. 

The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing based on disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex and familial status. Among other things, it requires all multifamily housing constructed after March 13, 1991, to have basic accessibility features, including accessible routes without steps or steep slopes to all ground-floor units. Enacted in 1990, the ADA requires, among other things, that places of public accommodation -- such as rental offices -- at multifamily housing complexes designed and constructed for first occupancy after Jan. 26, 1993, be accessible to persons with disabilities. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. 

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

DAYTON – Cynthia A. Faulkner, 34, of Dayton, Ohio, was sentenced to 21 months in prison for fraudulently obtaining food card benefits and submitting false income tax documents.

 

Faulkner pleaded guilty in January to three counts of making a false document, two counts of aiding in the filing of a false income tax return and one count of misprision of a felony.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office, Anthony V. Mohatt, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of Inspector General Investigations, Midwest Region, and Brad Geary, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Office of Inspector General announced the sentence imposed yesterday by U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.

 

According to court documents, Faulkner made false statements on her April 2013 application to receive SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits. As part of her request to reapply for cash and food assistance, Faulkner misrepresented the cost of her rental residence in Mason, Ohio, for which she paid more than $2,000 per month.

 

On a similar subsequent application in 2014, Faulkner falsely reported her and her husband’s total gross income as approximately $36,000. In fact, their total gross income for that period was nearly $91,000. 

 

Faulkner also aided in the filing of materially false income tax returns by underreporting business receipts by hundreds of thousands of dollars over tax years 2011 and 2012.

 

Further, Faulkner had first-hand knowledge of a bank fraud scheme and failed to report it to authorities. That scheme involved Capital Group Properties and Consultants Corp of Mason and Cincinnati, Ohio, and National Appraisal Sources, LLC of Cincinnati, Ohio, which were both co-owned by Faulkner. The scheme included receiving payments for fraudulent real estate appraisals.

 

During her federal case, Faulkner submitted false documents to the Court in hopes of obtaining a continuance for a court hearing. In these bogus documents, she informed the Court she had received a hysterectomy and provided a false patient medical discharge summary from the Tampa General Hospital in Tampa, Fla. In fact, Faulkner underwent no such surgery.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS Criminal Investigation, USDA OIG and HUD OIG, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Dwight Keller, who is prosecuting the case.

 

# # #

CINCINNATI – The Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio today announced the filing of a lawsuit against Ohio-based Miller-Valentine Operations Inc. and affiliated companies, owners, developers and builders of 82 multifamily housing complexes located in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.

The lawsuit alleges that the defendants failed to design and construct housing units and related facilities to make them accessible to persons with disabilities in compliance with the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The 82 complexes contain more than 3,000 units that are required by the FHA to have accessible features, and most contain public spaces that are required to comply with the ADA. 

According to the government’s complaint, the defendants built many of the complexes with the assistance of federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits or with the financial assistance of other federal government programs.

“For over two decades federal laws have required multifamily housing complexes to be built with accessible features,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband. “The Department of Justice is committed to protecting the rights of persons with disabilities to equal access to housing opportunities, including accessible dwellings and related facilities.”

“We’re in the business of enforcing federal civil rights laws to their fullest extent,” said U.S. Attorney Glassman “It doesn’t matter to us whether the defendant is an individual in a single neighborhood or, as here, a company operating in many states. The complaint that the United States filed today alleges not only that Miller-Valentine designed and built multi-family housing complexes that are not accessible to people with disabilities, but also that Miller-Valentine took public money to build those complexes and yet still built them such that some citizens wouldn’t be able to live there.”

The lawsuit, which was filed in Cincinnati today, alleges that the 82 properties have significant accessibility barriers, including steps leading to building entrances; non-existent or excessively sloped pedestrian routes from apartment units to site amenities (e.g., picnic areas, dumpsters, clubhouse/leasing offices); inaccessible parking; inaccessible bathrooms and kitchens; inaccessible door hardware; and insufficient maneuvering space at unit entrances and entrances to common use areas that make those entrances inaccessible to many people with disabilities.

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

The complexes at issue are: 

Ohio

 

• Aspen Grove Apartments, Middletown
• Bent Tree Apartments I, Piqua
• Bent Tree Apartments II, Piqua
• Breckenridge Apartments, Findlay
• Bridge Street Landing, Chillicothe
• Brookdale Trillium Crossing, Columbus
• Brookstone Apartments, Bellefontaine
• Carriage Trails Senior Villas, Huber Heights
• Cedar Trail, Bellbrook
• Cedar Wood Apartments, Mansfield
• Cobblegate Square Apartments, Moraine
• Deerfield Crossing, Lebanon
• Eagles Point Apartments, Kenton
• Faith Community Housing, Crestline
• Fox Run, Trotwood
• Glen Arbors Apartments, Napoleon
• Harbour Cove Apartments, Cincinnati
• Harmony Senior Village, Williamsburg
• Holly Hills Apartments, Jackson
• Hoover Place, Dayton
• Hunter’s Oak Apartments, Greenville
• Indian Trace I, Oxford
• Indian Trace II, Oxford
• Lake Towne Senior, Walbridge
• Lofts at Hoover, Dayton
• Lofts at One West High Street, Oxford
• Lyons Place I, Dayton
• Lyons Place II, Dayton
• Mallard Glen, Amelia
• Mallard Landing, Marion
• Meadow Creek Apartments, Bryan
• Meadow View South, Springboro
• Oak Wood Apartments, Lexington
• Pheasant Run Senior, Dayton
• Pine Ridge, Logan
• Quail Run Apartments, Van Wert
• Queen Esther’s Village, Canton
• Riverside Landing at Delaware Place, Delaware
• Riverview Bluffs, New Richmond
• Sandhurst, Zanesville
• Scioto Woods I, Chillicothe
• Scioto Woods II, Chillicothe
• Siena Village Senior Living, Dayton
• St. Bernard Commons, St. Bernard
• St. Rita’s Senior Housing, Garfield Heights
• Stone Creek Apartments, Moraine
• Sycamore Creek Apartments, Sidney
• Timber Glen II, Batavia
• Timber Ridge Apartments, Dayton
• Timberlake Apartments, Vandalia
• Walnut Run Senior Villas, Cortland
• Waterstone Landing, Perrysburg
• Whitehouse Square Senior Villas, Whitehouse
• Wind Ridge Apartments, Tipp City
• Windsor Place, Beavercreek
• Wright Place Apartments, Xenia

 

 

Other states

 

• Allegheny Pointe, Apollo, Pa.
• Fairway Breeze Apartments, El Reno, Okla.
• Galena Estates, Galena, Kan.
• Gallatin Park Apartments, Gallatin, Texas
• Hampshire Landing, Joplin, Mo.
• Honey Creek, Greenwood, Ind.
• Madison Place Senior, Gastonia, N.C.
• Meadow Vista Senior Villas, Altoona, Iowa
• Mill Pond, Muncie, Ind.
• Oak Ridge Apartments, Nolanville, Texas
• Pinecrest Apartments, Walkertown, N.C.
• Reserve at Oak Spring, Clarksburg, W.Va.
• Reserve at Spencer, Spencer, Okla.
• River Crossing, Charlotte, N.C.
• Silversage Point at Western Center, Fort Worth, Texas
• Summit Pointe, Lawrenceburg, Ind.
• The Enclave at Winston-Salem, Winston-Salem, N.C.
• The Landings at Steele Creek I, Charlotte, N.C.
• The Landings at Steele Creek II, Charlotte, N.C.
• Twin Cedars I, Hickory, N.C.
• Twin Cedars II, Hickory, N.C.
• Twin Lakes Senior Villas, Rantoul, Ill.
• Villas at Twin Cedars, Hickory, N.C.
• Walkers Ridge Apartments, Greensburg, Pa.
• Waterbury Apartments, Decatur, Ind.
• Weaver Farm Apartments, Florence, Ky

 

Anyone with information about the inaccessible conditions at these properties should call the Department of Justice at 1-800-896-7743, and follow the prompts to enter mailbox number 9996, or send an e-mail to fairhousing@usdoj.gov. 

The FHA prohibits discrimination in housing based on disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex and familial status. Among other things, it requires all multifamily housing constructed after March 13, 1991, to have basic accessibility features, including accessible routes without steps or steep slopes to all ground-floor units. Enacted in 1990, the ADA requires, among other things, that places of public accommodation -- such as rental offices -- at multifamily housing complexes designed and constructed for first occupancy after Jan. 26, 1993, be accessible to persons with disabilities. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. 

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

 

# # #

 

MARIETTA, Ohio – Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, today announced three indictments against alleged drug dealers in Marietta and Washington County.

Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Jonathan McPherson, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Marietta Police Chief Rodney Hupp, Washington County Sheriff Larry R. Mincks, Sr., Rocky Nelson, Executive Director, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s Organized Crime Investigations Commission (OCIC), and officials in the Major Crimes Task Force joined U.S. Attorney Glassman in announcing the charges.  

The first indictment charges Andrew Lee McCarty, 30, with conspiracy and illegal distribution of heroin, fentanyl and methamphetamine. The crime has a maximum punishment of 20 years in prison. 

The second indictment charges Darren M. Edwards, 54, with unlawful possession and distribution of more than 50 grams of methamphetamine, and illegal possession of a firearm. If convicted, Edwards faces at least five years and up to 40 years in prison.

The third indictment charges Darren C. Dunkle, 43, with possession and distribution of methamphetamine. That crime is punishable by at least five years and up to 40 years in prison.

Agents and officers arrested Dunkle and Edwards last week. McCarty was transferred into federal custody today. They will be taken to Columbus to appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigations by the DEA, ATF, Marietta Police, Washington County Sheriff’s Office, OCIC and the agencies participating in the Major Crimes Task Force. Those agencies include the Belpre Police Department, Marietta Police Department, McConnelsville Police Department, Morgan County Prosecutor’s Office, Morgan County Sheriff’s Office, Noble County Prosecutor’s Office, Noble County Sheriff’s Office, Washington County Prosecutor’s Office and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.

Glassman also commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Kelley, who is representing the United States in these cases.

An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A second case has been charged in the Southern District of Ohio related to an online romance money laundering scam.

 

Eric Y. Banahene, 36, of Columbus, Ohio, offered a guilty plea in U.S. District Court today for conspiring to commit money laundering and concealment money laundering (each punishable by up to 20 years in prison), as well as transactional money laundering (punishable by up to 10 years in prison).

 

Banahene admitted that he conspired with others to launder the proceeds of online romance scams and agreed to pay approximately $629,000 in restitution.

 

Six of eight Central Ohio defendants originally charged on Valentine’s Day last year have also offered guilty pleas in U.S. District Court. Two of the defendants remain fugitives.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office, Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Pittsburgh Division, and Angie Salazar, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) announced the pleas offered today before Magistrate Judge Norah McCann King.

 

Those originally charged in the conspiracy include: Kwabena M. Bonsu, Kwasi A. Oppong, Kwame Ansah, John Y. Amoah, Samuel Antwi, King Faisal Hamidu, Nkosiyoxoxo Msuthu and Cynthia Appiagyei.

Ansah and Antwi are at-large.

 

According to court documents, individuals committing fraud created several profiles on online dating sites. They then contacted men and women throughout the United States, Canada, and other countries with whom they cultivated a sense of affection, and often, romance.

 

After establishing relationships, perpetrators of the romance scams requested money, typically for investment or need-based reasons and provided account information and directions for where money should be sent. In part, these accounts were controlled by the defendants. The funds were not used for the investment or need-based reasons provided.

 

Defendants laundered the funds from the scheme, using companies and bank accounts in their control. In furtherance of the scheme, the co-conspirators created several companies, some of which were shell companies, to help attempt to hide the true nature of their proceeds. They withdrew the proceeds in cash, wired funds to their coconspirators and to other accounts, and used the fraud proceeds to purchase salvaged vehicles sold online. The cars were commonly exported to Ghana.

 

The purchase and shipment of vehicles helped conceal the fact that members of the conspiracy were sending proceeds of romance fraud overseas. Some members of the conspiracy found people in Ghana who wanted to purchase vehicles. The people in Ghana who wanted the cars would pay the perpetrators of the romance fraud scheme in Ghana. Under this method, money did not have to be wired overseas, which would have risked attracting the scrutiny of financial institutions.

 

Banahene admitted to conspiring with Bonsu and others to launder more than $629,031.

 

Defendants originally charged in the conspiracy admitted that they collectively laundered more than $3.3 million in proceeds from romance scams.

 

“These defendants  helped conceal the wrongdoing of those who preyed on men and women from throughout the U.S., Canada, and abroad through the ploy of intimacy when the bottom line is all they really wanted was their money,” stated William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office. “This case demonstrates how the U.S. Attorney’s Office and federal law enforcement will band together to help put an end to criminal behavior of those who prey on individuals for their personal financial gain. IRS criminal investigators will continue to use their financial expertise to identify and trace laundered funds in these types of fraud schemes.”

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS Criminal Investigation, U.S. Postal Inspection Service and HSI, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Peter K. Glenn-Applegate, who is prosecuting the case.

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – An Ohio man and a Texas man pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to crimes related to an auto-loan scheme in Texas and Columbus, Ohio that netted more than $2.6 million in fraudulent loans from at least nine financial institutions. 

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation and Yvonne DiCristoforo, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service, announced the pleas entered into yesterday afternoon before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.

 

According to court documents, from at least August 2014 through April 2018, Watson and Johnson recruited people who were qualified for membership in eligibility-based financial institutions like USAA, Navy Federal Credit Union and Pentagon Federal Credit Union to create accounts at those institutions.

 

Albert Watson, 37, of Columbus, Ohio, and Rassaun E. Johnson, 46, of Texas, then caused fraudulent loan applications to be submitted to the financial institutions.

 

Initially, the defendants simply inflated the sales price of actual vehicle sales to pocket the difference. Eventually, loan applications were submitted when there was no actual transfer of vehicle.

 

In many cases, multiple fraudulent auto loan applications were submitted on a single vehicle, with no intention that the vehicle’s ownership would transfer in accordance with the information submitted on the auto loan applications. The loans obtained were as large as $40,000.

 

In total, the financial institutions funded at least $2,680,423.26 million in loans that Watson and Johnson and others obtained by fraud.

 

Watson and Johnson each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud (punishable by up to 30 years in prison) and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering (punishable by up to 20 years in prison).

 

As part of their pleas, they have agreed to pay the more than $2.6 million in restitution.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS-Criminal Investigation and U.S. Secret Service, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Peter K. Glenn-Applegate, who is representing the United States in this case.

 

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – An Ohio inmate has been charged federally for writing at least 15 threatening letters containing powder. In some of the letters, he allegedly claimed the powder was anthrax or fentanyl or threatened the use of explosive devices.

 

Sean Heisa, 35, was indicted by a grand jury yesterday on two counts of making false information or hoaxes and 13 counts of mailing threatening communications.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the charges.

 

According to the indictment, from July 2017 to July 2018, Heisa mailed threatening letters to various officials throughout the state of Ohio.

 

Heisa mailed a letter to the city manager of Painesville, Ohio and claimed powder contained within the envelope was anthrax. Likewise, Heisa mailed a second letter that month to a magistrate judge in Whitehall, Ohio, again claiming the powder contained within the letter was anthrax.

 

Heisa also allegedly threatened via letter officials within the Coshocton Municipal Courthouse, Franklin County Common Pleas Court and then Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine through threatened exposure to anthrax and the use of explosive devices.

 

Other letters threatened to injure recipients – including the former Ohio prisons director, the Columbus Dispatch, the Circleville Herald and The Ohio State University – by exposure to fentanyl.

 

Heisa was charged by criminal complaint in December 2018 and arrested in January 2019.

 

Creating false information/hoaxes and mailing threatening communications are each federal crimes punishable by up to five years in prison

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI, and Assistant United States Attorney Jessica W. Knight, who is prosecuting the case.

 

An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

# # #

DAYTON – Michael D. Nailen, 54, of Glendale, Ariz. pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiring to distribute large quantities of fentanyl, heroin and cocaine.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Angie Salazaar, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck, Col. Richard S. Fambro, Superintendent, Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Miami Valley Bulk Smuggling Task Force announced the plea entered into before U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

 

According to court documents, Nailen worked with others to distribute more than 400 grams of fentanyl, 100 grams of fentanyl analogue, one kilogram of heroin and five kilograms of cocaine to Dayton, Ohio and other places throughout the eastern United States.

 

Nailen worked as a commercial truck driver, and when traveling for work, he permitted other individuals to hide kilogram quantities of controlled substances and bulk amounts of cash in his tractor trailer.

 

Consistent with this scheme, in December 2018, Nailen met Marco Gonzalez in Dayton at a local shopping center, where he gave Gonzalez a box containing controlled substances. Nailen understood that Gonzalez planned to deliver the package to local drug dealers in Dayton. Nailen and Gonzalez repeated this process in Columbus as well.

 

Nailen still had hidden within his tractor trailer (which was also carrying food products) the following controlled substances – namely more than: 23 kilograms of fentanyl; six kilograms of heroin; two kilograms of fentanyl analogue and five kilograms of cocaine. Before he and Gonzalez could deliver these additional drugs to other cities in the eastern United States, law enforcement discovered the contraband. 

 

Gonzalez pleaded guilty to the same narcotics crime as Nailen. Both men are scheduled for sentencing in August.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by HSI, the Miami Valley Bulk Smuggling Force, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio State Highway Patrol, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Brent Tabacchi, who is representing the United States in this case.

 

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Westerville man is being arraigned this afternoon on charges related to creating child pornography of his alleged sexual abuse of a five year old.

 

Christopher M. Sammons, 26, is scheduled for arraignment at 2:30pm before Chief U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Westerville Acting Police Chief Charles Chandler, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien and other members of the FBI Crimes Against Children Task Force announced the charges.

 

According to the court documents, on March 11, an undercover FBI agent in Little Rock, Ark. received a message from Sammons regarding sexual interest in children.

Throughout their conversations, it is alleged that Sammons encouraged the undercover agent to “just make some home made stuff” when discussing the availability of child pornography.

 

 

Sammons detailed sexually abusing a six-year-old victim and also allegedly offered to “share her next time if you’re interested in a long term thing.” It is alleged that Sammons sent the agent child pornography files and suggested plans for he and the agent to exchange videos of them sexually abusing minors.

 

Based on IP address information, the investigative lead was forwarded to FBI Columbus and a Task Force Officer here began communicating with Sammons.  

 

According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint in this case, Sammons told the task force officer he had been sexually abusing the victim for a year.

 

Sammons was charged by criminal complaint on April 5 and moved from local to federal custody on April 8.

 

A grand jury indicted him on April 23, charging him with one count of sexually exploiting a minor (15 to 30 years in prison), two counts of making a notice for child pornography (15 to 30 years in prison) and one count of distributing child pornography (five to 20 years in prison).

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Heather A. Hill and Special Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer M. Rausch, Director, Franklin County Special Victim’s Unit, who is prosecuting the case.

 

Criminal complaints and indictments merely contain allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A jury has convicted a Central Ohio doctor with charges related to a health care fraud scheme that included marketing prescription creams in Sav-a-Lot and low-income neighborhoods and persistently mailing those creams to Medicaid customers, as well as prescribing and distributing Suboxone without medical necessity.

 

Bernard Oppong, 60, of Blacklick, Ohio was convicted on five counts following a trial that began on April 22 before U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Lamont Pugh III, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Steven W. Schierholt, Executive Director, State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy announced the conviction.

 

According to court documents and testimony at trial, from January 2013 until April 2017, Oppong committed health care fraud.

 

Oppong was employed as a doctor at Health and Wellness Medical Center located on Perimeter Drive in Dublin. The center is affiliated with Health and Wellness Pharmacy on Blazer Parkway in Dublin. Co-defendants also previously operated a pharmacy location within Sav-a-Lot on Mock Road in Columbus.

 

Oppong and others sought to enrich themselves by billing for compound creams that were either not provided or were not medically necessary, billing for counseling services that were not provided, billing for individual counseling sessions that actually occurred in a group setting and billing for counseling services performed by an unqualified individual when there was no proper supervising physician.

 

Compound Creams

Oppong and others prescribed and Medicaid was billed for compound creams to treat pain, scarring and acne. Health and Wellness Pharmacy billed Medicaid $3 million for the creams, and Oppong was the ordering provider for more than half a million dollars of the claims.

 

For example, between January 2014 and April 2015, Health and Wellness Pharmacy submitted 1,436 claims for one compound cream, known as VersabaseA. The pharmacy with the second-highest amount of claims for that cream in that time only submitted 202 claims.

 

During the first quarter of 2015, Health and Wellness would sometimes bill for less than 10 prescriptions per day, and on other days it would bill for as many as 477 prescriptions. It also billed for filling prescriptions on Saturdays and Sundays when the pharmacy was not open.

 

Defendants billed for the creams with no medical necessity, as patients never requested the creams, were never actually prescribed them and had never met with Oppong.

 

The pharmacy marketed the compound creams at Clinic 5 (a Suboxone clinic), Sav-a-Lot and through a mobile van unit.

 

Patients with CareSource were targeted and told they were receiving free samples of pain cream. Then they began to receive more cream in the mail without requesting more. These were also billed to CareSource. 

Customers at Sav-a-Lot and in low-income neighborhoods were asked to fill out a survey asking about any conditions that they suffered from. Then, they would receive the compound creams in the mail every month, even when customers directed the co-conspirators to stop sending them. Many of these customers never met with a doctor, nor did they know Oppong, the prescribing physician.

 

Suboxone

Oppong was registered through the DEA to prescribe the drug addiction treatment Suboxone to up to 275 patients at any one given time.

 

Health and Wellness Medical Center submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid for psychotherapy services that were never rendered to patients.

 

Specifically, patients indicated they would sit in a room with a timer. When the timer went off, they were allowed to leave and receive their Suboxone prescription, which was written by Oppong and co-conspirators. No counseling services were provided during this time. Some patients reported coloring in coloring books during the time they were in the room.

 

Oppong pre-signed prescriptions for Suboxone and left them at the medical center for anyone to distribute. Prescriptions were issued to patients who had repeatedly failed urine tests.

 

The medical center treated patients paying with cash differently than those with insurance. The patients paying with cash only had appointments every two weeks or once a month, and paid $300. Insured patients had appointments three times a week. Cash-paying patients were only required to attend 15 to 30 minutes of counseling, while insured patients were required to stay for one hour.

 

Oppong and co-defendants averaged more than 150 patients per day.

 

Oppong was convicted of one count of executing a health care fraud scheme (punishable by up to 10 years in prison), as well as three counts of making false health care statements (five years per count) and one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance (15 years).

 

Co-defendants

Hilliard couple Darrell L. Bryant, 43, and Gifty Kusi, 34, were convicted by a jury in December 2018 of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and health care fraud following a two-week trial before Judge Marbley.

 

A final defendant Jornel Rivera, 54, of Dublin, pleaded guilty in May 2018 to making false statements related to health care matters. Rivera served as the Medical Director of Health and Wellness Medical Center.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy, HHS-OIG, FBI and DEA, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Kenneth F. Affeldt and Maritsa A. Flaherty, who are prosecuting the case.

 

This case is being prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit. Assistant United States Attorney Flaherty represents the unit in the Southern District of Ohio, which is one of 12 Districts to receive funding for such a prosecutor.

 

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Dayton man has pleaded guilty to charges related to robbing a Rite Aid in Brookville in July 2018.

 

David Allen Antonio Flemings, Jr., 22, of Dayton, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to robbery and possessing oxycodone.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Jonathan McPherson, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Brookville Police Chief Douglas Jerome announced the pleas entered into before U.S. District Michael H. Watson.

 

According to court documents, Flemings robbed the Rite Aid on N. Wolfcreek in Brookville, Ohio on July 5, 2018.

 

Flemings approached the pharmacy counter and presented the pharmacy technician with a note that said, “Put Note Back In the Bag. This a armed Robbery. These are the Government pills, not yours or worth your life. I’m willing to kill. Don’t push no silent alarms. Fill 2 bags.” The note also listed specific medications for the pharmacy to provide.

 

The pharmacist and pharmacy technician each noticed that the note was torn from page 78 of the book titled Common Sense Parenting.

 

Pharmacy workers complied with the demand for pills and Flemings fled the pharmacy with the narcotics.

 

The note remained at the pharmacy, though, and was later collected as evidence and submitted to the Miami Valley Regional Crime Laboratory for fingerprinting. The fingerprint results were a match to Flemings.

 

Robbery and possessing oxycodone with the intent to distribute it are each crimes punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the ATF and Brookville Police Department, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys David J. Bosley and Kelly A. Norris, who are representing the United States in this case.

 

# # #

Dayton – Today the government is unsealing indictments charging current and former city officials, as well as local businessmen, with crimes related to corruption and fraud. Today’s announcement involves four Dayton men.

 

The briefing will be held:

 

TODAY: TUESDAY, APRIL 30, 2019

 

WHEN:           1 P.M.

 

WHERE:         Walter H. Rice Federal Building

                        First Floor

200 W. 2nd St.

                        Dayton, Ohio 45402

 

WHO:             U.S. Attorney Benjamin C. Glassman

                        Assistant Special Agent in Charge Joe Deters, FBI

                        Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost

                        Auditor of State Office

                       

                                               

 

 

Room available beginning at 12:45 P.M. No TV lighting or multbox will be available. ID will be required for entrance at Security.

 

#  #  #

DAYTON – A federal grand jury here has returned indictments against a former Dayton city commissioner, a current city official and two Dayton businessmen, charging them with fraud and public corruption.  

 

The indictments charge:

• Joey Williams, former Dayton City Commissioner, with bribery as a government official,
• Roshawn Winburn, current Director of Dayton’s Minority Business Assistance Center, with wire fraud and public corruption,
• Clayton Luckie, businessman, with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud,
• Brian Higgins, businessman, with wire fraud.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Ohio Auditor of State Keith Faber announced the indictments.

 

“The grand jury alleges that Winburn devised a scheme that deprived the people of Dayton of their right to the honest and faithful services of its public officials through bribery and the concealment of material facts and information regarding minority-owned, woman-owned and small disadvantaged businesses,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. He noted that the investigation is continuing.

 

Williams is charged with soliciting bribes worth more than $5,000 as a government employee.

 

Williams served as an elected commissioner of the City of Dayton from 2001 until 2018. In 2015, Williams allegedly accepted a construction project at his personal home by an individual for a greatly reduced price in exchange for influencing the awarding of city contracts to that same individual.

 

The individual’s business was subsequently awarded at least $150,000 in contracts with both the City of Dayton and CityWide Development Corporation, a non-profit organization that functioned as a development and financing arm of the City of Dayton. CityWide routinely awarded thousands of dollars in contracts to private companies for the demolition of homes in Dayton.

 

It is alleged that Williams accepted more than $50,000 in free benefits from the individual, including cash payments and the construction of a patio at his home.

 

In an attempt to conceal the fraud, Williams allegedly demanded the individual create a fake invoice, falsely reflecting that Williams had personally paid the individual more than $50,000 for the home improvement project.

 

The grand jury charged Luckie with devising a fraudulent scheme to take advantage of programs offered by the federal and state governments to help disadvantaged businesses.

 

Luckie allegedly purported himself as affiliated with and authorized to speak on behalf of a disadvantaged business that provided administrative support services. He allegedly approached the owner of a demolition company in 2016 or early 2017 and offered Luckie’s company’s certification to help secure a demolition project from the City of Dayton.

 

He allegedly ordered magnetic signs with his company’s name on it to put on the side of trucks belonging to the actual demolition company. He is accused of sending false invoices for thousands of dollars to the City of Dayton.

 

Higgins is charged with filing a fraudulent insurance claim in connection with water damage to the Meeker Residence, an 8,000 square-foot house in Dayton. It is alleged that Higgins received more than $100,000 in insurance claims that he used for his personal benefit rather than to repair water damage that occurred from a 600-gallon fish tank.

 

Higgins allegedly submitted invoices and repair cost estimates from a construction vendor to the insurance company in order to obtain money. According to the indictment, the vendor documents were false and misrepresented the status of repair work at the Meeker Residence.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI, Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) and the Ohio Auditor of State’s Office, as well as assistant United States Attorneys Brent Tabacchi, SaMee Harden and Dominick Gerace, who are representing the United States in this case.

 

Indictments merely contains allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

 

If you have any information related to the schemes alleged above, please contact the FBI’s Dayton Public Corruption Tip Line at 937-291-5222.

 

# # #

DAYTON – Christopher Watson, 29, of Dayton, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 42 months in prison followed by three years of court supervision for illegally possessing a firearm.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Jonathan McPherson, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck and agencies participating in the FBI Safe Streets Task Force announced the sentence handed down Wednesday, April 24 by U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.

 

According to the Statement of Facts in this case, task force officers searched a house in west Dayton in March 2018 and found a loaded 9mm handgun holding 16 rounds of ammunition in a bedroom. Investigators determined that the gun belonged to Watson. Because Watson had been convicted of felony drug possession in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court in May 2011, he was prohibited from having a firearm or ammunition. Watson pleaded guilty in January 2019 to illegal possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the Safe Streets Task Force, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Andrew Hunt, who represented the United States in this case. 

 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Justice Department reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

 

###

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Robert K. Mason, 42, of Columbus, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to robbing a bank in Whitehall, pistol-whipping two of the bank’s employees while demanding money, and conspiring with his girlfriend to hide the gun he used in the robbery.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Columbus Division of Police Acting Chief Tom Quinlan, and Whitehall Police Chief Mike Crispen announced the plea entered today before Chief U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr.

 

Mason pleaded guilty to one count of bank robbery, punishable by up to 25 years in prison. He also pleaded guilty to one count of using a firearm during a crime of violence, which carries a minimum punishment of seven years and up to life in prison, and one count of conspiracy to tamper with evidence, which is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

 

In a statement of facts in the plea agreement, Mason admitted that he robbed the Huntington Bank at 4550 East Broad Street on September 26, 2018. Mason walked in the bank, lifted his shirt to show that he had a gun, pulled the handgun and ordered customers to the floor. Mason vaulted the counter and demanded money from the tellers, hitting two of them with the gun when he became frustrated at the speed of the employees.

 

Mason ran out the front door and escaped in a car driven by his girlfriend, Bretta L. Nallen. Whitehall police arrested Mason on October 31. While he was in custody, he called Nallen and told her to get rid of the gun. Nallen is facing charges of being an accessory to the crime and evidence tampering. 

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by law enforcement and assistant U.S. attorneys David DeVillers and Courter Shimeall, who are representing the United States in this case.

 

# # #

CINCINNATI – An Ohio man who pretended to be a missing Illinois boy has been indicted by a grand jury with charges related to making false statements to federal agents and aggravated identity theft.

 

A federal grand jury here indicted Brian Michael Rini, 23, formerly of Medina, Ohio, yesterday. The indictment was filed this morning. Rini is scheduled for arraignment on the indictment at 1:30pm tomorrow before Magistrate Judge Karen L. Litkovitz.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Robert Brown, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Louisville, Ky. Division, Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac, Newport Police Chief Thomas Collins, Hamilton County Coroner Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco, Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Neil and officials with the Aurora, Ill. Police Department announced the new charges.

 

Rini was charged by criminal complaint on April 6 with one count of making false statements. Today’s indictment includes two counts of making false statements and one count of aggravated identity theft.

 

According to court documents, Newport, Ky. police officers responded to a call on Wednesday in which the caller described Rini as wandering the street, looking confused and in need of assistance.

 

Rini allegedly told officers his name was Timmothy Pitzen and that he was abducted when he was six years old and he “just wanted to go home.”

 

Local authorities confirmed that Timmothy’s name was associated with a missing and possibly abducted child. Specifically, in 2011, Timmothy, then six years old, went missing from Aurora, Ill. Timmothy was picked up at his school by his mother and a few days later, his mother was found deceased in a Rockford, Ill. hotel room.

 

Several notes were found in the hotel room that claimed Timmothy was with people who loved him and would take care of him. The notes also stated he would never be found.

 

Posing as Timmothy, Rini allegedly claimed he had recently escaped from a hotel room in which two men had been holding him captive. He said he had been sexually and physically abused for years while in captivity and that he was having abdominal pain.

 

Rini was transferred to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Emergency Room because of the complaint of abdominal pain, and there, FBI task force officers met with Rini to potentially investigate sex trafficking and crimes against children. FBI special agents and a detective from the Aurora, Ill. police department also spoke with Rini.

 

It is alleged that Rini continued to claim to be Timmothy throughout conversations in the hospital.

 

Rini refused to provide his fingerprints to investigators at Children’s Hospital; however, eventually, he agreed to submit a buccal swab for DNA testing.

 

DNA test results confirmed Rini’s identity. As a known felon, Rini’s DNA was known to the FBI. Ohio Department of Corrections records indicate Rini was released from an Ohio prison on March 7, 2019.

 

Once law enforcement officers confronted Rini about his true identity, Rini immediately stated he was not Timmothy Pitzen. He allegedly said he watched a story about Timmothy on 20/20 and stated he wanted to get away from his only family. When questioned further, it is alleged that Rini stated “he wished he had a father like Timmothy’s.”

 

Further investigation by the FBI found that Rini had allegedly portrayed himself as a juvenile sex trafficking victim on two prior occasions. In those instances, he was only identified once he was fingerprinted.

 

Making false statements to federal agents is a federal crime punishable by eight years in this case. Aggravated identify theft carries a mandatory additional two year sentence.

 

Assistant United States Attorneys Kyle J.  Healey and Christy L. Muncy are prosecuting the case.

 

An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A federal grand jury here returned two additional charges today in the case involving former Columbus Vice Detective Andrew K. Mitchell.

 

The superseding indictment charges Mitchell, 55, of Sunbury, with an additional count of obstructing justice and one count of destructing or removing property to prevent seizure.

 

Mitchell was arrested on March 11 on original federal charges related to allegedly kidnapping victims under the guise of an arrest and forcing those victims to engage in sex for their freedom.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Ohio Auditor of State Keith Faber, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien and Interim Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan announced the charges.

 

The original seven-count indictment charged Mitchell with three counts of depriving individuals of their civil rights while acting under the color of law (up to life imprisonment), two counts of witness tampering (up to 20 years in prison), one count of obstructing justice (up to 10 years in prison) and one count of making false statements to federal agents (up to five years in prison).

 

It is alleged that – while acting under color of law – Mitchell deprived victims of their Constitutional right to be free from unreasonable seizures by kidnapping victims under the guise of an arrest and forcing them to have sex for their freedom.

 

Today’s superseding indictment adds another count of obstructing justice (up to 20 years in prison) and one count of destructing or removing property to prevent seizure (up to five years in prison).

 

According to the latest court document, in October 2018, Mitchell destroyed, disposed of, concealed and/or altered records, documents, furniture, rugs, blankets, linens, clothing and other objects in an attempt to prohibit them from being used as evidence in the federal case currently pending against him.

Specifically, he directed individuals to assist him in removing and disposing of potential evidence, as well as cleaning out with bleach and other chemicals, items in an apartment on Denune Avenue in Columbus.

 

It is alleged that Mitchell knowingly destroyed, damaged or removed property prior to a lawful, court-authorized search conducted by the FBI, thus preventing federal authorities from taking the property into custody.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI, Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), Ohio Auditor’s Office and Columbus Division of Police, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Jessica H. Kim and Kevin W. Kelley, who are prosecuting the case.

 

Indictments merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

 

If you believe you are a potential victim related to this case, or have any relevant information, please call the FBI at 614-849-1777.

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Four additional defendants have been arrested and charged with using false or stolen Social Security numbers. Five other defendants were charged in March with illegally using Social Security numbers to lease cars and apartments and get approximately $200,000 of credit.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Tracey Thanos, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, and Yvonne DiCristoforo, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service, announced the charges.

 

This second round of charges includes:

 

• Jamellia Kibby, 35, of Columbus. Kibby runs a credit counseling company called LIFE, LLC (Living, Independent, Futures, Everyday, LLC) in Columbus. When interviewed about her work with a Columbus Police detective, she said, “I help people like if you had problems where you had fraud or something that happened to you with identity or with your credit, stuff like that, I help people with credit issues.”

Kibby allegedly used an alias, a fake identity and a child’s Social Security number to help cover up her criminal record when she applied for an apartment. It is also alleged that she opened a bank account and leased an SUV under the false identity as well.

• William Lawson, 33, of Columbus. Lawson allegedly used four different Social Security numbers – each of which belongs to a real person – to finance seven cars totaling more than $150,000.
   
• Kimberly Hudson, 33, of Columbus. Hudson also allegedly used a Social Security number belonging to a real person to finance vehicles. It is alleged that Hudson used the identity illegally to finance three cars totaling more than $50,000.
   
• Shaniqua Coleman, 29 of Columbus. It is alleged that Coleman used an alias, a false ID, and a child’s Social Security number to open a bank account, borrow money and finance an SUV.

Each of the vehicles in these cases were leased or purchased at Columbus-area dealerships.

 

The first set of criminal complaints charged the following five central Ohio residents:

 

Tommy Edwards Jr., 28, allegedly used three fake Social Security numbers – including two numbers belonging to children – and other fake identity documents to lease a car and three apartments in the Columbus area in 2016 through 2018.

 

Kiara Mitchell, 28, was charged with using a Social Security number belonging to a child to rent an apartment in Groveport.

 

Isaiah Burnley, 19, allegedly used false Social Security numbers and forged paycheck stubs to rent apartments in 2018.

 

Wayne Hamler, 34, allegedly used a forged Social Security card to lease a car in 2018.

 

China Hester, 36, used a fake Social Security number to rent an apartment in the Columbus area in 2018.

 

The complaints also allege that Edwards, Mitchell, Burnley and Hamler used the false documents to get almost $200,000 in loans and credit cards.

 

False representation of a Social Security number is a crime punishable by up to five years in prison and fine of up to $250,000 and three years of supervised release.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General and the United States Secret Service and the assistance of the United States Marshals Service, Columbus Division of Police and Delaware County Prosecutor’s Office, as well as Special Assistant United States Attorney Timothy Landry, who is representing the United States in all of the cases.

 

A criminal complaint merely contains allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Gregory J. Darr, 65, of Coshocton, formerly the Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of the Coshocton Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA), was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for embezzling more than $431,000 from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Brad Geary, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General; Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost; Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Coshocton County Sheriff Timothy L. Rogers, Richmond County, Ga. Sheriff Richard Roundtree and Kimberly Cheatle, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service, Atlanta; announced the sentence handed down today by Chief U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr.

 

“Judge Sargus’ sentence included a requirement that Darr repay taxpayers the $431,668.45 he embezzled and that he remain under court supervision for three more years,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “The sentence takes into account that Darr not only embezzled the money, but that he attempted to cover-up and obstruct investigators, abusing his position of public trust,”

 

Darr pleaded guilty on September 4, 2018 to conspiring to embezzle money from the United States. His plea was the result of a joint federal-state investigation into public corruption and embezzlement of funds from CMHA. The agency received federal HUD money each year to provide housing to low-income households.

 

Darr served as the Executive Director of the CMHA Resident Council, even though he had also been serving as the Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of CMHA since 2001. Federal regulations prohibited him from serving in the resident council leadership capacity or from benefitting financially from the council.

 

Beginning in January 2012 and continuing through September 2017, Darr repeatedly embezzled money from both the CMHA and the Resident Council operating accounts for his own personal gain and for the gain of co-defendant Eric L. Blackwell, 54, of Coshocton.

 

Darr used the money for, among other things, restaurant bills, out-of-state expenses made in connection with real-estate ventures he co-owned with Blackwell, home improvements made to properties that he or Blackwell owned, and a marina slip and lot rental at Spend-a-Day Marina on Indian Lake, where he and Blackwell maintained a boat and mobile home.

 

While on the clock with CMHA, Darr routinely traveled to Georgia to manage his investment properties, all while being paid by CMHA to manage the agency’s day-to-day operations in Coshocton. He and Blackwell also improperly used CMHA office space and supplies to operate their joint business ventures.

 

In August 2017, Darr learned of a federal investigation into his unlawful activities when agents with the HUD Office of Inspector General executed search warrants at CMHA. He thereafter took steps to willfully obstruct and impede the investigation, by falsifying resident council meeting notes and attempting to conceal records relevant to the investigation.

 

Relatedly, Darr and Blackwell falsified claims to obtain monthly housing assistance payments on behalf of purported tenants who never actually resided in a housing project managed by the two defendants in Augusta, Ga.

 

Blackwell also pleaded guilty to conspiracy and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 16.

 

“Today’s sentence proves our continuing resolve to root out fraud and corruption in all forms, particularly when the programs involved should have been used to help our neediest families,” said HUD OIG Special Agent in Charge Geary. “It is our continuing core mission to work with our law enforcement partners and the United States Attorney’s Office to protect the integrity of our housing programs and to take strong action against those who seek to personally benefit from them.”

 

“Dollars that were supposed to help families achieve the basic need of a roof over their heads instead were used by this guy to line his own pockets via his rental properties,” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said. “Today’s much-deserved sentence is the product of local, state and federal law enforcement agencies joining forces to take down a corrupt public official who preyed on the unprotected.”

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by federal and local law enforcement in Ohio and Georgia, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Noah R. Litton and J. Michael Marous, who represented the United States in this case.

 

If you have information related to public housing corruption, please email hotline@hudoig.gov or call 1-800-347-3735.

 

# # #

DAYTON – James Rapier, 42, of Rossburg, Ohio, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 35 years in prison for coercing teenage girls to send him sexually explicit pictures of themselves.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Steve Francis, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Darke County Sheriff Toby L. Spencer announced the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.

 

Rapier pleaded guilty in January to coercing a 13-year old female in February 2018 and a 15-year old female in December 2017 to send him sexually explicit photos of themselves. At the times Rapier committed the acts, he was under a requirement to register as a sex offender. In 2000, he was convicted of one count of Gross Sexual Imposition and two counts of Corruption of a Minor in Darke County. In 2005, he was classified as a habitual sex offender when he was convicted of Pandering Obscenity Involving a Minor in Darke County.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by HSI and the Darke County Sheriff’s Office, as well as Assistant United States Attorney SaMee Harden, who is representing the United States in this case.

 

# # #

 

DAYTON – Adam J. Moffitt, 31, of Urbana, Ohio, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 156 months in prison for creating and distributing pictures of the sexual abuse of a female infant. He was also sentenced to remain under court supervision for the rest of his life.  

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Steve Francis, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), announced the sentence handed down yesterday by U.S. District Judge Walter H Rice.

According to court documents, between October and November 2016, Moffitt logged onto a website and posted in chatrooms dedicated to the discussion and dissemination of child pornography and abuse. On at least three occasions, Moffitt posted internet links that, when clicked, led to images of child pornography. Two of those links led to images Moffitt had created of the sexual abuse of a prepubescent female.

While executing a search warrant at Moffitt’s house in November 2016, investigators found more than 600 images of child pornography on his computer. Moffitt pleaded guilty in June 2018 to distributing child pornography.

“The fact that an undercover officer in New Zealand, who was patrolling the internet, found the images Moffitt posted underscores the global danger of child exploitation,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “Distributing such disturbing images all but ensures that the child will continue to be victimized long after this case is concluded.”

"HSI will continue to aggressively target predators who share child pornography online; sharing furthers the motivation of those who are producing this repulsive material,” said Francis. “As today's sentence clearly demonstrates, these are serious crimes with serious consequences."

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by HSI, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Dominick S. Gerace, who is representing the United States in this case. 

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DAYTON – Carlos Raymond Alvarez, aka “Rico Finessegod”, 25, of Dayton, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to commit carjacking and gun charges for his role in a scheme that lured a victim through a dating app and stole his car when he showed up for his expected date.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Jonathan McPherson, Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Montgomery County Sheriff Rob Streck, and Colonel Richard S. Fambro of the Ohio State Highway Patrol announced the plea entered yesterday before U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.

A federal grand jury indicted Alvarez along with co-defendants A. Philip Thomas Christian Daugherty, 23, of Dayton, Zy’Lique Anaise Murphy, 19 and Zhaire Simone Chardae Evans, 19, both of Columbus, in November 2018. According to court documents, Evans posted messages on internet dating sites soliciting men to meet her for a date. One of the meetings was set for July 6, 2018 in Harrison Township. When the victim arrived, Alvarez and Daugherty pretended to be jilted boyfriends of Evans and Murphy, beat the victim, stole his keys and his car and drove the car to Columbus.  Alvarez fired a handgun he was carrying near the victim as a way to intimidate him.

Alvarez pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit carjacking, punishable by up to five years in prison and one count of using a firearm during a crime of violence, punishable by a mandatory minimum of ten years and up to life in prison. Judge Rose scheduled a sentencing hearing for Alvarez for July 24. Charges against the other three defendants remain pending.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by ATF, the Sheriff’s Office and the Ohio Highway Patrol, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Dwight Keller who is representing the United States in the case.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Daniel Emerson Norton, 51, of Arlington, Virginia and owner of Torrance, California-based Emerson Company, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, concealment money laundering and tampering with documents or proceedings in connection with illegally obtaining approximately $2,229,142.40 in Defense Department contracts and providing defective parts made in China instead of U.S.-made critical application items used by the U.S. military. 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Leigh-Alistair Barzey, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Services (DCIS), Central Field Office, and William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation announced the plea entered yesterday before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.

A trial against Norton began April 8th. He interrupted the trial to enter the pleas of guilty.

“Contractors who provide defective and nonconforming parts place the reliability of U.S. military equipment in jeopardy,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “That in turn puts our men and women in uniform in danger. That’s why I think it’s crucial that contractors like Norton and Emerson Company are held accountable for their crimes.”

According to court documents and testimony at trial, the Department of Defense (DOD) barred Emerson Company from doing business with the U.S. Government in 2011. Norton then continued to recruit people who either already had companies or were willing to start companies to do his bidding on solicitations and contract with the military to provide parts for the U.S. military between 2011 and 2013. When one of the companies was awarded a purchase order, Norton directed them to send it to Emerson Company which would buy and ship the part directly to DoD.

Norton bought the parts from manufacturers in China, even though a large number of them were required to be made in the United States. The parts Norton provided had dimensional defects, material substitutions, incorrect or missing markings, incorrect finishes, improper shapes or styles, mislabeled packaging or poor workmanship and thus failed to conform to the contract requirements. Additionally there were contracts that called for an exact part from a specific domestic manufacturer. Rather than obtaining these parts from the specified manufacturer, Norton supplied parts obtained from China. The parts involved a variety of parts utilized on military weapon systems to include aircraft, vessels, vehicles, and nuclear reactor programs.

Once Norton realized he was under investigation in 2013 by both the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), an agency of the Defense Department, DCIS and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, he took several steps to mislead the government in its investigations. For example, in an effort to avoid an extension of debarment for providing a non-conforming bolt used on a C-130 aircraft engine, Norton submitted false documents to the DLA deflecting blame from Emerson Company as the manufacturer. Norton knew, however, that he had ordered the bolts from a manufacturer in China and they did not conform to the contract requirements. Norton also admitted to falsely communicating information to his attorney, or allowing such information to be communicated, with the intent that it be communicated to the United States as it related to its grand jury investigation, thereby obstructing that investigation.

Norton faces up to ten years in prison for his crimes. He also agreed to make restitution of more than $2 million and to forfeit his $800,000 home in Hawaii and more than $300,000 in proceeds in a bank account. Judge Watson will schedule a date for sentencing.

“IRS criminal investigation followed the flow of money in this case in order to uncover the fraud committed against American taxpayers,” Acting SAC Cheung said. “We are proud to work with our law enforcement and military partners to investigate financial transactions that impact our country and our military.”

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by DCIS and the IRS, Assistant United States Attorneys Jessica W. Knight and J. Michael Marous, who prosecuted the case, and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher St. Pierre.

# # #

CINCINNATI – Manuel Brijido Burciaga, 36, was sentenced today to an additional 168 months in prison for conspiring to deal drugs while in custody on pending federal drug trafficking charges.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Steve Francis, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Northeast Hamilton County Drug Task Force (DART) and West Chester Police Chief Joel Herzog announced the sentence imposed today by U.S. District Judge Susan J. Dlott.

According to court documents, Burciaga was in custody in Butler County jail as he was being prosecuted for trafficking cocaine. He eventually received a 60-month sentence in April 2018 after pleading guilty to that charge.

In November 2016, Burciaga and his girlfriend, Yvette Estrella Rodriguez, 29, discussed the distribution of approximately 11 kilograms of methamphetamine. Burciaga arranged for her to connect with an outside contact to obtain the meth and distribute it in southern Ohio and elsewhere. Rodriguez met with an individual in January 2017 to make the deal. She and her mother, Socorro Rodriguez, 54, were arrested after she delivered five kilograms of meth.  

“This case underscores the peril someone faces for continued drug trafficking activity while in custody,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “Although he was initially facing a five-year sentence, Burciaga will now be serving 19 years in federal custody due to his crimes.”

Yvette and Socorro Rodriguez have each pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and are facing sentences of up to ten years.

Glassman commended the investigation by the federal, regional and local agencies, as well as Criminal Chief Kenneth L. Parker and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ebunoluwa Taiwo, who are representing the United States in the case.

# # #

DAYTON – Alandre J. Gilbreath, Jr., 34, of Springfield, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 60 months in prison for possessing carfentanil with intent to distribute.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration, Springfield Police Chief Lee Graf and Acting Clark County Prosecutor Daniel P. Driscoll announced the sentence handed down by U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Rose.

According to court documents, in May 2017, Springfield police officers responded to reports of an attempted residential break-in and encountered Gilbreath standing on the porch of the house. They saw Gilbreath remove a baggie from his pocket and throw it into the yard.

“Officers picked up the bag, and forensic analysis at the Bureau of Criminal Investigation determined it contained 16.28 grams of a mixture of fentanyl and carfentanil,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “This amount is a quantity intended for distribution.”

Gilbreath pleaded guilty in December 2018 to one count of possessing with the intent to distribute more than 10 grams of carfentanil.

According to the DEA, carfentanil is an analogue of fentanyl and is 10,000 times more potent than morphine. Carfentanil is used in veterinary practice to immobilize large animals.

“Powerful opioids, such as Carfentanil, will continue to be a serious threat to America and Ohio as long as drug dealers such as Gilbreath are willing to put themselves and the community at risk,” said Special Agent in Charge Plancon. “Gilbreath was in possession of enough carfentanil to kill approximately 700 people. This case is a testament to the relentless determination of law enforcement to make a significant impact on the opioid supply in Ohio and to keep our communities drug free.”

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the DEA and Springfield Police Department, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Amy M. Smith, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Saunders, formerly with the Southern District of Ohio, who represented the United States in this case. 

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Antwan L. Hutchinson, 27, of Columbus, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to murdering two potential witnesses and conspiring to distribute narcotics.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Roland Herndon, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Interim Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan announced the pleas entered into before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.

 

Hutchinson and Michael J. Favors, 26, also of Columbus, were indicted in April 2017 and charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and murdering two potential witnesses.

 

According to court documents, Hutchinson led a drug trafficking organization and possessed and distributed cocaine, heroin, oxycodone and marijuana. As part of the drug conspiracy, he and Favors used “trap houses” that were in others’ names as locations to store and sell the drugs. This included using threat of force and using the homes of drug-addicted individuals.

 

Hutchinson also intimidated, assaulted, threatened and tortured individuals with serious physical harm who were perceived as owing money or drugs to the members of the conspiracy. Further, he tortured and killed individuals who were seen as potential witnesses against the members of the conspiracy.

 

As part of his plea, Hutchinson admitted he intentionally killed Sidney Campbell and Marie Stamp in February 2017 because they were perceived as potential witnesses against the defendants.

 

Hutchinson also beat and tortured Cody Campbell in February 2017. Hutchinson used a two-by-four to beat and extension cords to whip Campbell, who died hours after the incident.

 

Pursuant to the murder charges to which Hutchinson pleaded, the defendant must be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of release.

 

“As the result of the pleas entered today, Antwan Hutchinson will spend the rest of his life behind bars without the chance of release,” said. U.S. Attorney Glassman. “That’s a just punishment for his crimes. And I hope it provides a sense of closure for the victims’ families.

 

Hutchinson was indicted federally two months after murdering witnesses. His conviction cannot be appealed and should illustrate that people who kill witnesses will be met not only with justice, but with swift justice.”

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by ATF and the Columbus Police, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys David M. DeVillers and Jessica W. Knight who are prosecuting the case.

 

# # #

CINCINNATI – A U.S. District Court jury convicted Dr. Saad Sakkal, 71, of illegally distributing and dispensing controlled substances that led to the death of one victim in 2016. Sakkal was practicing at Lindenwald Medical Association, Inc. in Hamilton.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Lamont Pugh III, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Anthony Groeber, Executive Director, State Medical Board of Ohio, Steven Schierholt, Executive Director, State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy, Sarah D. Morrison, Administrator, Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation, announced the verdict reached today following a trial that began April 1 before U.S. District Judge Michael R. Barrett.

“Sakkal had a medical license, but he was the opposite of a doctor – he was dealing deadly drugs under the guise of practicing medicine and even killed one of his ‘patients’,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said of the jury’s verdict. “The penalty for dealing drugs that cause death is at least 20 years and up to life in prison.” Judge Barrett will schedule a date for sentencing.

The jury convicted Sakkal of 30 counts of illegal distribution of controlled substances outside the scope of a medical practice and with no legitimate medical purpose, and six counts of use of a registration number that was issued to someone else.

During the trial, prosecutors presented evidence gathered by investigators that Sakkal performed inadequate physical exams to identify and verify patient’s complaints of pain, and that he issued prescription combinations that were particularly dangerous and addictive. Pharmacists testified that they warned Sakkal of the risks and eventually refused to fill prescriptions issued by Sakkal. Investigators also testified that Sakkal received repeated notice of addiction, overdoses and deaths, but continued his practices.  

A federal grand jury indicted Sakkal in June, 2018. Agents arrested him in Florida after he was indicted. He has been held without bond since his arrest. Judge Barrett ordered him to remain in custody until sentencing.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation by the HHS OIG, DEA, Ohio Medical and Pharmacy boards, Bureau of Workers’ Compensation and Ohio Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Unit, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy Oakley and Timothy Mangan, who represented the United States in the case.

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Jorge A. Landaverde, 35, of Columbus, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to murder in aid of racketeering.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Rebecca Adducci, Detroit Field Office Director, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations, Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin and Interim Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan announced the plea entered into today before Chief U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr.

Landaverde is one of 23 individuals charged in a second superseding indictment in February 2018 who are alleged to be members and associates of MS-13 in Columbus.

The defendants are charged in a racketeering conspiracy, which includes five murders as well as attempted murder, extortion, money laundering, drug trafficking, assault, obstruction of justice, witness intimidation, weapons offenses and immigration-related violations.

The second superseding indictment alleges that the defendants committed a host of overt acts in furtherance of the conspiracy, including: 1) the December 2006 murder of Jose Mendez, a suspected confidential informant, in Perry County; 2) the November 2008 murder of Ramon Ramos on Lockbourne Road in Columbus; 3) the mid-2015 murder of Carlos Serrano-Ramos, a suspected rival gang member, near Innis Road in Columbus; 4) the November 2015 murder of Wilson Villeda near Innis Road in Columbus; and 5) the December 2016 murder of Salvador Martinez-Diaz, a suspected rival gang member, on Melroy Avenue in Columbus.

As part of his plea, Landaverde accepted responsibility for his role in the murder of Martinez-Diaz.  Landaverde faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Also in federal court in Columbus today, an associate of the MS-13 enterprise was sentenced. Carolina Garcia-Miranda, 31, of Columbus, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for racketeering conspiracy. She will receive credit for time served.  She admitted to wiring money gained through illegal activity from the United States to El Salvador, Honduras, and elsewhere at the direction of MS-13 members.  These transactions helped conceal the nature and source of the funds and assisted in promoting MS-13’s activities and operations.

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI, ICE, Columbus Division of Police and Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, and the assistance of the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Brian J. Martinez and Jessica H. Kim, who are prosecuting the case.

# # #

CINCINNATI – Stacey Howell, 42, aka “Ice Queen”, of Cincinnati was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 240 months in prison for leading a drug trafficking organization that obtained high grade methamphetamine from Mexico and distributed it in southern Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Steve Francis, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Northeast Hamilton County Drug Task Force (DART), Harrison Police Chief Charles Lindsey, the Butler County Undercover Narcotics Unit (BURN), and the Gwinnett County, Georgia District Attorney’s Office announced the sentence imposed today U.S. District Judge Timothy Black.

Court documents say Howell and her husband, Thomas Wilson, 45, aka “Michalo”, acquired the drugs from sources in Mexico. Wilson was an associate of the Mexican Mafia, Surenos-13 and La Familia from Michoacan, Mexico. They built an organization that trafficked the drugs in Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana beginning in 2012. She arranged for large quantities of meth to be delivered from Mexico to Texas, Georgia and elsewhere. Either she, her husband or another member of the organization would pick up the drugs and bring them back to the tri-state for distribution. Howell paid members of the organization with cash, green dot cards, trading memorabilia or with vehicles. Howell was the lead defendant in an indictment returned in 2015 charging 16 people with conspiracy and drug trafficking. Howell pleaded guilty March 9, 2018.

“Eight of the defendants have been sentenced so far and have received sentences ranging from one to 20 years behind bars,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “The severity of the sentences reflects the reach of the organization and the destructive impact drug trafficking organizations have on our region. Whether opioids, meth or other stimulants, we need to maintain the highest levels of vigilance about the foreign and domestic threat of illegal drugs.”

Wilson was sentenced to 20 years in prison on March 28, 2018. A third leader of the organization, Norman Kuhbander, 54, aka “Flacco” and “Stormin Norman”, pleaded guilty and was sentenced on March 22, 2018 to 180 months in prison. Kuhbander also forfeited ten firearms, three compound Bows, a Kevlar armor vest, and assorted ammunition.

“HSI is committed to eliminating criminal enterprises that peddle poison to the streets of Ohio; narcotics investigations now make up 50 percent of all HSI cases,” said Francis. “Joint investigations such as this disrupt and dismantle international drug trafficking operations from top to bottom and have an immediate positive impact on the community.”

Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the HSI offices in Cincinnati and Atlanta, the local agencies and task forces, and Criminal Chief Kenneth L. Parker and Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Oakley, who represented the United States in the case.

# # #

CINCINNATI – Steven E. Ritter, 54, of Sharonville, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 96 months in prison for sex trafficking a minor.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Field Office, Sharonville Police Chief Steve Vanover and other members of the FBI’s child exploitation task force announced the sentence handed down today by U.S. District Judge Timothy S. Black.

 

According to court documents, in April 2017, Ritter coordinated with two brothers to arrange for sexual acts with a 16-year-old female. Ritter paid $200 to William P. Washington, 38, of Cincinnati, for Washington to deliver narcotics and the minor victim to his hotel room.

 

There, Ritter engaged in sexual activity with the victim and they both used the narcotics. After doing so, Ritter called William Washington, Jr., 49, of Cincinnati, to come get the victim from the hotel.

 

Ritter pleaded guilty in February 2018 to one count of sex trafficking a minor.

 

As part of his plea, Ritter admitted that on numerous previous occasions, he arranged personally and with others to pay Washington for narcotics and prostitutes. Some of those instances involved both an adult female and the minor victim.

 

The two brothers were each arrested in June 2017 on federal charges of sex trafficking a minor.

 

According to their complaint, the minor victim was forced to engage in prostitution, was injected with heroin and forced to smoke crack cocaine. The victim told investigators she was often beaten and on one occasion had a gun held to her head while being forced to have sex with someone. Every time she was forced to engage in prostitution, Washington and Washington, Jr. arranged her transportation and had control over the transactions.

 

Both brothers have pleaded guilty. Washington, Jr. has since filed to a motion to withdraw his guilty plea, and the court has yet to rule on that motion.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force and the Sharonville Police Department, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Kyle J. Healey, who is representing the United States in this case. 

 

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Jackson, Ohio man has agreed to plead guilty in U.S. District Court to orchestrating a $50 million dollar Ponzi scheme that defrauded at least 46 investors.

 

Jason E. Adkins, 40, was arraigned in federal court today in Columbus.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation and Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the case.

 

According to the plea agreement, beginning in 2012 and continuing through 2018, Adkins conspired to solicit millions of dollars from investors under false pretenses, failed to invest the funds as promised and misappropriated investors’ funds for his own benefit and the benefit of others.

 

Adkins and others claimed that they bought and sold over-sized tires commonly known as off-the-road tires, which are used on earth moving equipment and/or mining equipment. Investors were told their money would be used to buy the tires at a steep discount, and that the tires would then be re-sold to a buyer at a much higher rate.

 

Investors were promised a 15 to 20 percent rate of return on investment, generally within 180 days. Adkins would sometimes pay the return on investment for the first transaction with investor victims.

 

“Making good on early investments perpetuated Adkins’s scheme by appearing to corroborate his claims, which helped him attract more investors,” said U.S. Attorney Glassman. “What the victims didn’t know was that Adkins was paying off early investments with the money from later ones. Although the product that Jason Adkins was purporting to buy and sell—oversize tires—was unusual, the operation of his scheme was not. It was right out of Ponzi’s playbook.”

 

For example, although two specific investors were paid for their initial investment of $20,000 with Adkins in 2016, they only received $320,000 total from Adkins in return for approximately $1 million worth of investments overall.

 

Adkins used several methods to conceal the scope of the Ponzi scheme and to minimize associated tax liabilities. For example, he and others sent various amounts of investor funds through a long series of wire transfers to many bank accounts. He created more than 15 corporate bank accounts to receive and distribute fraudulently obtained funds from investors.

 

Adkins also laundered his ill-gotten proceeds for at least five years, inlcuding by investing in front businesses created by co-conspirators.

 

Adkins bought cars, vacations and property with the funds from the scheme. For example, he paid for the construction of a pool at his personal residence and also paid more than $20,000 to lease a private jet.

 

Further, Adkins failed to file individual income tax returns reporting his income derived from the scheme. In 2013, specifically, Adkins earned at least $1.1 million, which caused a tax loss of nearly $237,000 to the IRS.

 

“A person who creates a web of financial lies will soon be caught up in it. Mr. Adkins offered rates of return of 15 to 20 percent to investors and unfortunately these were false promises,” said William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS, Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office. “No matter the source of income, everyone has an obligation to the American public to pay their fair share of income taxes. The success of this investigation was a direct result of the excellent partnership amongst IRS Criminal Investigation, FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

 

Adkins has agreed to plead guilty to three counts of wire fraud and six counts related to money laundering – all crimes punishable by up to 20 years in prison – and one count of tax evasion, which carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS Criminal Investigation and FBI, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas W. Squires, David M. DeVillers and S. Courter Shimeall, who are representing the United States in this case.

 

If you believe you’re also a victim of Adkins’s scheme, please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office Victim Witness Coordinator, Barbara Vanarsdall, at 614-469-5715.

 

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Jackson, Ohio man has agreed to plead guilty in U.S. District Court to orchestrating a $50 million dollar Ponzi scheme that defrauded at least 46 investors.

 

Jason E. Adkins, 40, was arraigned in federal court today in Columbus.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation and Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the case.

 

According to the plea agreement, beginning in 2012 and continuing through 2018, Adkins conspired to solicit millions of dollars from investors under false pretenses, failed to invest the funds as promised and misappropriated investors’ funds for his own benefit and the benefit of others.

 

Adkins and others claimed that they bought and sold over-sized tires commonly known as off-the-road tires, which are used on earth moving equipment and/or mining equipment. Investors were told their money would be used to buy the tires at a steep discount, and that the tires would then be re-sold to a buyer at a much higher rate.

 

Investors were promised a 15 to 20 percent rate of return on investment, generally within 180 days. Adkins would sometimes pay the return on investment for the first transaction with investor victims.

 

“Making good on early investments perpetuated Adkins’s scheme by appearing to corroborate his claims, which helped him attract more investors,” said U.S. Attorney Glassman. “What the victims didn’t know was that Adkins was paying off early investments with the money from later ones. Although the product that Jason Adkins was purporting to buy and sell—oversize tires—was unusual, the operation of his scheme was not. It was right out of Ponzi’s playbook.”

 

For example, although two specific investors were paid for their initial investment of $20,000 with Adkins in 2016, they only received $320,000 total from Adkins in return for approximately $1 million worth of investments overall.

 

Adkins used several methods to conceal the scope of the Ponzi scheme and to minimize associated tax liabilities. For example, he and others sent various amounts of investor funds through a long series of wire transfers to many bank accounts. He created more than 15 corporate bank accounts to receive and distribute fraudulently obtained funds from investors.

 

Adkins also laundered his ill-gotten proceeds for at least five years, inlcuding by investing in front businesses created by co-conspirators.

 

Adkins bought cars, vacations and property with the funds from the scheme. For example, he paid for the construction of a pool at his personal residence and also paid more than $20,000 to lease a private jet.

 

Further, Adkins failed to file individual income tax returns reporting his income derived from the scheme. In 2013, specifically, Adkins earned at least $1.1 million, which caused a tax loss of nearly $237,000 to the IRS.

 

“A person who creates a web of financial lies will soon be caught up in it. Mr. Adkins offered rates of return of 15 to 20 percent to investors and unfortunately these were false promises,” said William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, IRS, Criminal Investigation, Cincinnati Field Office. “No matter the source of income, everyone has an obligation to the American public to pay their fair share of income taxes. The success of this investigation was a direct result of the excellent partnership amongst IRS Criminal Investigation, FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

 

Adkins has agreed to plead guilty to three counts of wire fraud and six counts related to money laundering – all crimes punishable by up to 20 years in prison – and one count of tax evasion, which carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the IRS Criminal Investigation and FBI, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Douglas W. Squires, David M. DeVillers and S. Courter Shimeall, who are representing the United States in this case.

 

If you believe you’re also a victim of Adkins’s scheme, please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office Victim Witness Coordinator, Barbara Vanarsdall, at 614-469-5715.

 

# # #

CINCINNATI – An Ohio man who pretended to be a missing Illinois boy has been charged federally with making false statements to federal agents.

 

Brian Michael Rini, 23, formerly of Medina, Ohio, was arrested last night and is currently in federal custody. Rini was presented in federal court at 11am today for an initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen L. Litkovitz.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Robert Brown, Special Agent in Charge, FBI, Louisville, Ky. Division, Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac, Newport Police Chief Thomas Collins, Hamilton County Coroner Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco and Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Neil announced the charge.

 

According to the criminal complaint and affidavit filed today, Newport, Ky. police officers responded to a call on Wednesday in which the caller described Rini as wandering the street, looking confused and in need of assistance.

 

Rini allegedly told officers his name was Timmothy Pitzen and that he was abducted when he was six years old and he “just wanted to go home.”

 

Local authorities confirmed that Timmothy’s name was associated with a missing and possibly abducted child. Specifically, in 2011, Timmothy, then six years old, went missing from Aurora, Ill. Timmothy was picked up at his school by his mother and a few days later, his mother was found deceased in a Rockford, Ill. hotel room.

 

Several notes were found in the hotel room that claimed Timmothy was with people who loved him and would take care of him. The notes also stated he would never be found.

 

Posing as Timmothy, Rini allegedly claimed he had recently escaped from a hotel room in which two men had been holding him captive. He said he had been sexually and physically abused for years while in captivity and that he was having abdominal pain.

 

Rini was transferred to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Emergency Room because of the complaint of abdominal pain, and there, FBI task force officers met with Rini to potentially investigate sex trafficking and crimes against children. FBI special agents and a detective from the Aurora, Ill. police department also spoke with Rini.

 

It is alleged that Rini continued to claim to be Timmothy throughout conversations in the hospital.

 

On Wednesday and yesterday, Rini refused to provide his fingerprints to investigators at Children’s Hospital; however, yesterday, he agreed to submit a buccal swab for DNA testing.

 

DNA test results confirmed Rini’s identity. As a known felon, Rini’s DNA was known to the FBI. Ohio Department of Corrections records indicate Rini was released from an Ohio prison on March 7, 2019.

 

Once law enforcement officers confronted Rini about his true identity, Rini immediately stated he was not Timmothy Pitzen. He allegedly said he watched a story about Timmothy on 20/20 and stated he wanted to get away from his only family. When questioned further, it is alleged that Rini stated “he wished he had a father like Timmothy’s.”

 

Further investigation by the FBI found that Rini had allegedly portrayed himself as a juvenile sex trafficking victim on two prior occasions. In those instances, he was only identified once he was fingerprinted.

 

Making false statements to federal agents is a federal crime punishable by eight years in this case.

 

Assistant United States Attorneys Kyle J.  Healey and Christy L. Muncy are prosecuting the case.

 

A criminal complaint merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

# # #

 

*********** MEDIA ADVISORY ***********

 

FEDERAL & LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT TO MAKE PRESS ANNOUNCEMENT REGARDING MATTER INVOLVING MISSING AURORA, ILLINOIS BOY

 

           

The briefing will be held:

 

TODAY: FRIDAY, APRIL 5, 2019

 

WHEN:           11:30 A.M.

 

WHERE:         U.S. Attorney’s Office

                        221 E. Fourth Street

                        Fourth Floor

                        Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

 

                                   

 

 

Room available beginning at 11:15 A.M. No TV lighting or multbox will be available. ID will be required for entrance at Security on the fourth floor.

 

#  #  #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Seven Ohio men have pleaded guilty to related crimes regarding child pornography and the sexual abuse of two 10-year-old children.

 

Four of the men were charged in a second superseding indictment returned by a federal grand jury in August 2018, for crimes related to producing child pornography and the repeated sexual abuse of a 10-year-old girl. They include: William G. Weekley, 35, of Newark; Timothy F. Sullivan, 50, of Canal Winchester; Franklin Eugene Perry, 63, of Columbus; and Brian S. Perkins, 42, of Mt. Vernon.

 

Three other defendants were discovered in the course of the investigation that was initiated by the discovery of Weekley’s activities. Those three men were each charged in separate cases on August 23, 2018. Grant Michalski, 29, of Columbus, was charged by criminal complaint. A federal grand jury charged Eric Zevely, 34, of Columbus, to offenses related to the production of child pornography and sexual abuse of another 10-year-old girl. Finally, in a fourth case, Jordan I. Makowski, 33, of Greenville, Ohio, was indicted by a federal grand jury for distributing and receiving child pornography.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd A. Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Steve Francis, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Franklin County Sheriff Dallas Baldwin, Westerville Acting Police Chief Charles Chandler and other members of the FBI Crimes Against Children Task Force announced the pleas entered into before Chief U.S. District Judge Edmund A. Sargus, Jr.

 

This investigation began when Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations Special Agent/FBI Task Force Officer Larry McCoy communicated undercover with Weekley online. From that initial investigation into Weekley, investigators were able to discover the additional defendants.

 

According to court documents, the defendants made online contact with each other and others who shared, or whom they believed to share, their sexual interest in minors, incest and child pornography.

After making initial contact through Craigslist, Weekley – who pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today – communicated with each of the other defendants on an ongoing basis through text and various other apps, including Wickr.

 

Weekley had regular access to a female child (Jane Doe), who was approximately 10 to 11 years old during the offenses detailed. Weekley sexually abused Jane Doe and created images and videos of the molestation, which he shared with others, including some of the co-defendants.

 

Weekley and Perry discussed sexually abusing Jane Doe together, and made plans for Perry to join Weekley in the sexual abuse of Jane Doe. Perry encouraged Weekley to continue abusing the victim and did eventually sexually abuse the victim together with Weekley.

 

Likewise, Perkins and Sullivan requested that Weekley bring Jane Doe to meet them for the purpose of sexually abusing Jane Doe, but it is not believed that Perkins or Sullivan actually met with Weekley.

 

One of the conversations found on Weekley’s phone between him and Sullivan was initiated when Weekley responded to an online classified ad Sullivan posted entitled “I AM LOOKING TO PRIVATELY MEET AN INCEST FAMILY. Mom son brother sister.”

 

Weekley and Michalski messaged on Craigslist about interests in sexual topics like “family, forced” and “K9 and more.”

 

Zevely engaged in thousands of communications with numerous other individuals in response to ads placed on Craigslist, including with Weekley. Investigators discovered Zevely sexually abused a different 10-year-old victim who was not Jane Doe. Zevely also engaged in communications about sexually abusing minors with both HSI and FBI undercover task force officers.

 

In a conversation on Kik messenger, Makowski sent several files containing child pornography to another individual.

 

Weekley pleaded guilty today to three counts of production of child pornography (15 to 30 years in prison), one count of attempted coercion of a minor (10 years to life in prison) and two counts of distributing child pornography (five to 20 years in prison).

 

Sullivan pleaded guilty on Tuesday to attempted coercion or enticement of a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity (10 years to life in prison).

 

Perry pleaded guilty in January 2019 to coercion or enticement of a minor to engage in illegal sexual activity (10 years to life in prison).

 

Perkins, Zevely and Michalski all pleaded guilty in November 2018. Perkins and Michalski pleaded guilty to receipt of child pornography (five to 20 years in prison), and Zevely pleaded guilty to producing child pornography (15 to 30 years in prison).

 

Makowski pleaded guilty in February 2019 to distributing child pornography (five to 20 years in prison).

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and Assistant United States Attorneys Heather A. Hill and S. Courter Shimeall, who are prosecuting the cases.

 

# # #

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A trio of Columbus tax-return preparers has been charged with filing false tax returns and defrauding the United States of nearly $2 million. Two of the three defendants pleaded guilty in federal court today.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and William Cheung, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation, announced the case.

 

According to court documents, Quiana Mathews, 38, of Montgomery, Ala.; Virginia Earnest, 41, of Conway, Ark.; and Barbara Huffman, 56, of Montgomery, Ala. operated a seasonal tax business in Columbus under the name GQ’s Tax Pros LLC.

 

Mathews was arraigned on March 20, 2019, in federal court in Columbus and Earnest and Huffman today pleaded guilty.

 

According to court documents, from 2012 through 2016, the defendants filed more than 1,200 returns claiming more than $5.3 million in refunds.

 

Specifically, 100 percent of the returns they filed claimed a refund, approximately 93 percent claimed the Earned Income Credit and approximately 75 percent claimed Schedule C self-employment income or expenses.

 

The defendants filed returns with false Schedule C information in order to qualify taxpayers for the Earned Income Credit. The Earned Income Credit is a tax credit ranging from approximately $400 to $6,100, which is available to low-income taxpayers who have earned income within a certain limited range. Because the credit is refundable, taxpayers who qualify for the credit can receive a refund even if they have little or no tax withholdings.

 

Some returns also claimed fictitious dependents to generate tax benefits.

 

“Our tax system depends on the honesty of filers and preparers,” said U.S. Attorney Glassman. “As tax season continues, let’s keep in mind that willfully manipulating tax filings is fraud against the United States. That’s a federal crime that the IRS will investigate and we will prosecute.”

 

Mathews, Earnest and Huffman were each charged with conspiring to defraud the United States through false claims, which is a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

 

According to Huffman’s plea, more than 80% of the refunds generated by returns she prepared were due to fraud, resulting in nearly $237,000 in tax loss.

 

Likewise, more than half of the refunds Earnest generated by returns she prepared were due to fraud, resulting in more than $94,000 in tax loss. The total tax loss caused by the trio was more than $1.9 million.

 

As part of their pleas, Huffman and Earnest have agreed to pay back the tax losses in restitution.

 

Mathews has pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for trial on July 16, 2019.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by IRS Criminal Investigation and Assistant United States Attorney Peter Glenn-Applegate, who is representing the United States in this case.

 

# # #

DAYTON – Craig H. Gilbreath, Jr., 20, of Springfield, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 60 months in prison for possessing carfentanil.

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration, Springfield Police Chief Lee Graf and Acting Clark County Prosecutor Daniel P. Driscoll announced the sentence handed down by U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

According to court documents, in June 2017, Gilbreath was encountered by police in Springfield, Ohio. Gilbreath ran from officers and ultimately threw bags containing approximately 14 grams of carfentanil.

Gilbreath pleaded guilty in August 2018 to one count of possessing with the intent to distribute more than 10 grams of carfentanil.

According to the DEA, carfentanil is an analogue of fentanyl and is 10,000 times more potent than morphine. Carfentanil is used in veterinary practice to immobilize large animals.

“Powerful opioids, such as Carfentanil, will continue to be a serious threat to America and Ohio as long as drug dealers such as Gilbreath are willing to put themselves and the community at risk,” said Special Agent in Charge Plancon. “Gilbreath was in possession of enough carfentanil to kill approximately 700,000 people. This case is a testament to the relentless determination of law enforcement to make a significant impact on the opioid supply in Ohio and to keep our communities drug free.”

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the DEA and Springfield Police Department, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew J. Hunt and Amy M. Smith, who are representing the United States in this case. 

###

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A total of 10 of 19 Columbus men charged federally as being associated with a local Crips gang has pleaded guilty. The men were indicted in September 2018 and charged in a racketeering conspiracy that includes five murders, multiple attempted murders and other violent and drug-trafficking crimes.

 

Those who pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today include:

Name

Also Known As

Age

Eric Henderson, Jr.

Lil Go, Little E

19

Eric Henderson, Sr.

Easy

39

Steve Henderson, Jr.

Big Go, Tana

25

Lee Devine McCrae

Capone

22

Marcus Walton

Ox, Wax

35

 

In January and February, Terrance Pyfrom, 21; Derrick Thornton, 29; Donovan Reed, 26; Andrew Harris, 30; and Dominique Bryant, 26, pleaded guilty.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Roland Herndon, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Interim Columbus Police Chief Tom Quinlan, United States Marshal Pete Tobin and Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien announced the pleas entered into before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Watson.

 

According to court documents, the defendants are members and associates of the Trevitt and Atcheson Crips gang known as T&A.

 

The gang derived its name from Trevitt and Atcheson streets in the King-Lincoln District of Columbus, where its members predominantly reside.

 

Beginning in June 2010, T&A members and associates conspired in a racketeering enterprise and engaged in murders, attempted murders, drug trafficking, firearms trafficking, witness tampering, robbery, assault and other crimes.

The gang controlled the neighborhood through intimidation, fear and violence. Gang members were expected to retaliate with acts of violence when their members and associates were disrespected, threatened, intimidated or subjected to acts of violence.

 

Specifically, co-conspirators are charged with five murders:

the murder of Franky Tention on July 1, 2012, in the area of 431 Ellison Street;

the murder of William Moore on March 15, 2013;

the murder of Marvin Ector on December 23, 2013, on East 5th Avenue;

the murder of Quincy Story on January 24, 2015; and

the murder of Deaonte Fisher on March 4, 2016.

 

T&A engaged in a long-term operation of consistent transportation of heroin and crack from Columbus to Portsmouth, Ohio, for sale in various “trap houses.” In the summer of 2015, T&A, under the leadership of Eric Henderson, Sr., began to deliver large amounts of heroin, crack, and oxycodone from Columbus to Portsmouth on a weekly basis.  Female associates and drug-addicted “mules” transported the drugs at the direction of T&A members and associates. The drugs were then sold on a daily basis out of a number of “trap houses” controlled by T&A members.

Henderson, Sr. pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit racketeering and conspiracy to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin. He faces a minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison. According to his plea agreement, Henderson, Sr. participated extensively in the planning and organizing of the Portsmouth drug operation by recruiting accomplices and co-conspirators to carry out the trafficking.

 

Eric Henderson, Jr. pleaded guilty to the racketeering conspiracy. He admitted that on numerous occasions he sold gram quantities of crack cocaine in Columbus and Chillicothe. A sentence of 78 months in prison has been recommended to the court, and Judge Watson will consider that recommendation at a future sentencing hearing.

 

Steve Henderson, Jr. also pleaded guilty to the racketeering conspiracy. According to his plea agreement, Steve Henderson shot and attempted to murder rival Milo Bloods gang members in June 2014.  He also opened fire on an individual after a dispute involving stolen narcotics in April 2015. All parties involved in Steve Henderson’s case have recommended a sentence of 240 months in prison for the court to consider.

 

As part of McCrae’s plea, he admitted to participating in the racketeering conspiracy (a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison) by selling narcotics as part of the Portsmouth drug operation and also opening fire during the April 2015 drug dispute.

Walton pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin, a crime punishable by 10 years up to life in prison. According to his plea agreement, he arranged for heroin addicts to transport cocaine and heroin from Columbus to Portsmouth. Walton also sold narcotics in Portsmouth and was personally responsible for distributing between 1,000 and 3,000 grams of heroin himself.

 

Others charged in this case include:

Name

Also Known As

Age

Charles Carson

 

23

Jonathan Dantzler

Jesus

26

Terrell Hansard

T Body

21

Michael Henderson

Bang

20

Brandon Martin

Gunner

26

Shawn Nelms

Mook

25

Deswan Robinson

Dezzy

25

Thomas Seals

Bhomo

24

Michael Watson

Sossa

25

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by ATF, FBI and Columbus Police, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys David M. DeVillers, Kevin W. Kelley and Noah R. Litton, who are prosecuting the case.

# # #

South Korea-based companies Hyundai Oilbank Co. Ltd. and S-Oil Corporation have agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges and pay a total of approximately $75 million in criminal fines for their involvement in a bid-rigging conspiracy that targeted contracts to supply fuel to United States Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force bases in South Korea, the Department of Justice announced today.  Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil have agreed to plead guilty to an antitrust charge contained in a superseding indictment that was unsealed today.

The superseding indictment also charges seven individual defendants — associates, managers, and executives of companies that conspired to rig bids for fuel supply contracts — for participating in this bid-rigging conspiracy and in a scheme to defraud the U.S. government. 

In separate civil resolutions, Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil have agreed to pay a total of approximately $52 million to the United States for civil antitrust and False Claims Act violations related to the bid-rigging conspiracy.  These settlements reflect the important role of both Section 4A of the Clayton Act and the False Claims Act to ensure that the United States is fully compensated when it is the victim of anticompetitive conduct. 

“These charges reflect the Antitrust Division’s commitment to prosecuting bid rigging and fraud — especially when those crimes directly target taxpayer dollars that fund the U.S. military’s critical work.  We will not waver in our dedication to prosecuting corporations and individuals, wherever they are located, that seek to profit at the expense of American taxpayers,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.  “We will continue to use Section 4A of the Clayton Act to obtain civil settlements that protect the interests of American taxpayers.”  

“As the superseding indictment shows, the United States will pursue and hold accountable not only corporate malefactors but also individuals who defraud the military,” said U.S. Attorney Benjamin C. Glassman for the Southern District of Ohio.

“Illegal bid-rigging schemes violate fundamental tenets of government contracting and lead to inflated charges and costs to the government,” said Assistant Attorney General Jody Hunt for the Department of Justice’s Civil Division.  “The Department remains steadfast in its commitment to upholding the rule of law and protecting our nation’s military and the American taxpayer from conduct that undercuts competition.”

Pursuant to the Department’s Coordination policy, often labeled the Anti-Piling On policy, the Antitrust Division’s criminal and civil sections and the Civil Division’s Fraud Section worked together effectively to reach coordinated global settlements that were equitable and proportionate to the defendants’ conduct.  Furthermore, both divisions successfully coordinated their efforts to avoid imposing fines, penalties, or damages that were unnecessarily duplicative of each other.

The Criminal Case:   

Today, the Department of Justice unsealed a three-count superseding indictment from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio that was returned in September 2018.  According to the superseding indictment, the Defense Logistics Agency and the Army and Air Force Exchange Service are two U.S. Defense Department agencies that contract with South Korean companies to supply fuel to the numerous U.S. military bases throughout South Korea. 

Count One charges Hyundai Oilbank, S-Oil, and the seven individual defendants with participating in a combination and conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition during the bidding process for these fuel supply contracts.  The individual defendants, all residents and citizens of South Korea, are Hee-Soo Kim, Tae Ho Cho, Jiwon Kang, Young-Ho Yoon, Byung Kuk Kim, Byungik Moon, and Eul-Jin Hyung.

Count Two charges Hyundai Oilbank, S-Oil, and the seven individual defendants with participating in a conspiracy to defraud the United States by impairing, obstructing, and defeating the lawful function of the procurement processes for the fuel supply contracts.  As part of its plea agreement with Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil, the Antitrust Division agreed to move to dismiss Count Two against Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil upon sentencing. 

Count Three charges Hee-Soo Kim with tampering with a witness by use of intimidation, threats, or corrupt persuasion, with the intent to hinder, delay, and prevent communication with a law enforcement officer of the United States. 

Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil have agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department’s ongoing criminal investigation.  The plea agreements are subject to court approval.

The investigation began based on a tip to the Defense Logistics Agency Inspector General (IG) Hotline.  The IG office developed the information, interviewed the complainant, and then referred the case to the Defense Criminal Investigative Service. 

“We will vigilantly protect the integrity of our nation’s military procurement process and the enabling capabilities it brings to our warfighters across the globe,” said Deputy Director Paul K. Sternal of the Department of Defense, Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS).  “The criminal charges and fines announced today demonstrate the heavy consequences for those who subvert competition through collusion and price fixing.  Joined by our investigative partners, DCIS stands ready to pursue those who threaten our nation’s military resources.”

“We are pleased with today’s guilty pleas from the defendants for their unconscionable involvement in this bid-rigging conspiracy that threatened to place our forces in jeopardy while fulfilling their missions,” said Frank Robey, the Director of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit.  “As we have stated many times before, the highly trained special agents from our Major Procurement Fraud Unit, along with our federal law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively investigate organizations that commit crimes against our Army, our Soldiers and our nation.”

“The Air Force Office of Special Investigations has an unwavering commitment to identify, exploit, and neutralize fraud impacting the integrity of the Air Force, Department of Defense and U.S. Government acquisition process,” said Director Timothy Ries, of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Office of Procurement Fraud.  “These significant criminal and civil penalties are the result of the exceptional collaborative efforts of our organization and its law enforcement and Department of Justice partners to bring these corporations to justice for engaging in the decade-long bid-rigging conspiracy that targeted fuel supply contracts for U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force bases in South Korea.”

“Today’s announcement demonstrates the FBI’s persistence in investigating fraud against the United States wherever it occurs,” said FBI Executive Assistant Director Amy Hess.  “These companies and individuals thought they could cheat the system and the American taxpayer, but the FBI, working with our partners, exposed their scheme.  This case should be a lesson to all:  the FBI will aggressively pursue those who attempt to defraud the United States and will bring them to justice.”

“Open competition remains a cornerstone of our free democratic society,” said Assistant Director in Charge Paul D. Delacourt of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office.  “These criminal and civil charges demonstrate the FBI’s determination to investigate companies and individuals, foreign and domestic, who engage in bid rigging and other corruption schemes to defraud the U.S. Government.  Working with our federal law enforcement partners, the FBI is committed to bringing to justice those who enrich themselves through illegal activity at the expense of the U.S. taxpayer.”

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

A criminal violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a criminal fine of $1 million for individuals and a maximum criminal fine of $100 million for corporations.  The maximum fines may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine. 

A criminal violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371 carries a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison.

Today’s pleas are the fourth and fifth respectively resulting from an ongoing federal investigation into bid rigging, price fixing, and other anticompetitive conduct targeting U.S. Department of Defense fuel supply contracts in South Korea.  The criminal case is being prosecuted by the Antitrust Division’s Washington Criminal I Section and the United States Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Ohio, in conjunction with the DCIS, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Army CID, the Defense Logistics Agency Office of the Inspector General, and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.  Anyone with information in connection with this investigation is urged to call the Antitrust Division’s Citizen Complaint Center at 888-647-3258 or visit www.justice.gov/atr/contact/newcase.html.

The Civil Case:

The Department’s Antitrust Division today filed a civil antitrust complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, and at the same time filed proposed settlements that, if approved by the court, would resolve the lawsuit against Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil for their anticompetitive conduct targeting the U.S. military in South Korea. 

As a result of this conduct, the United States Department of Defense paid substantially more for fuel supply services in South Korea than it would have had Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil competed for the fuel supply contracts.  Under Section 4A of the Clayton Act, the United States may obtain treble damages when it has been injured by an antitrust violation.  The proposed settlement provides that Hyundai Oilbank pay $39.1 million and S-Oil pay $12.98 million to the United States to resolve the civil antitrust violations.  In addition to the payments, Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil have agreed to cooperate with the ongoing civil investigation of the conduct and to abide by antitrust compliance program requirements.  The amount paid by each defendant exceeds the amount of the individual overcharge and reflects the value of defendants’ cooperation commitments and the cost savings realized by avoiding extended litigation.

The payments will also resolve civil claims that the United States has under the False Claims Act against Hyundai Oilbank and S-Oil for making false statements to the government in connection with their agreement not to compete.  The Civil Division has entered into separate settlement agreements with the companies to resolve these claims. 

Except where based on admissions by defendants in the criminal pleas, the claims resolved by the civil agreements are allegations only.

The civil settlements were handled by the Antitrust Division’s Transportation, Energy, and Agriculture Section, by the Civil Division, and by the Civil Fraud section of the United States Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of Ohio.     

The United States’ civil investigation resulted from a whistleblower lawsuit filed under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  Those provisions allow for private parties to sue on behalf of the United States and to share in any recovery. 

The proposed civil antitrust settlement, along with the Antitrust Division’s competitive impact statement, will be published in The Federal Register, as required by the Antitrust Procedures and Penalties Act.  Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement within 60 days of its publication to Kathleen O’Neill, Chief, Transportation, Energy, and Agriculture Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 8000, Washington, D.C. 20530.  At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the court may enter the civil antitrust settlement upon a finding that it serves the public interest.

CINCINNATI – A federal grand jury has charged 11 people from across the country with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in a scheme to defraud distressed homeowners by falsely representing that they could help the victims save their homes. This included more than 50 victims in the Southern District of Ohio.

 

Eight defendants have been arrested to date. The indictment was returned on March 6 and unsealed today.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Robert  Manchak, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Federal Housing Finance Agency -  Office of Inspector General (FHFA-OIG), Northeast Region, Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Tommy D. Coke, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Pittsburgh Division, and Philip R. Bartlett, Inspector in Charge, USPIS, New York region, announced the charges.

 

According to the 26-count indictment, from 2013 through 2018, the defendants took advantage of homeowners’ desperation to save their homes and used money from homeowner victims to personally enrich themselves.

 

Those arrested to date include:

Name

Also Known As

Age

Residence

Lorin K. Buckner

 

62

Hamilton, Ohio

Garrett Stevenson

 

41

Cincinnati, Ohio

Damien Byrd

 

40

Norfolk, Va.

Stacy Kay Slaughter

 

58

Gahanna, Ohio

Marcus A. Mullings, Jr.

 

57

Hackensack, N.J.

Talia Marie Stephen-Mullings

Marie Hightower

36

Hackensack, N.J.

Amal Mahepaul Balmacoon

Martin

37

South Ozone Park,  N.Y.

John Nelson

 

66

Brooklyn, N.Y.

 

Companies named in the indictment include:

• MVP Home Solutions, LLC, also known as
  • Stay In or Walk Away
• Bolden Pinnacle Group Corp., also known as
  • Home Advisory Services Network
  • Home Advisory Services Group Inc.
• Silverstein & Wolf Corp.

Joel Harvey, 36, of Cincinnati, Dessalines Sealy, 55, of Brooklyn, N.Y. and Rafiq Bashir, 35, of Jacksonville, Fla. have also been charged in the indictment.

 

It is alleged that defendants were involved in a multilevel marketing scheme, which promised affiliates commissions by recruiting distressed homeowners to the above named companies.

 

They used multiple ways to recruit affiliates, including conference calls and direct mailings. For example, some co-conspirators hosted weekly conference calls where participants from across the country dialed in to hear details of the scheme and share sales strategies. During the calls, defendants encouraged affiliates to recruit homeowners to their companies on the promise of easy money.

 

Some co-conspirators also allegedly promoted, organized and attended conferences in which affiliates came to hear details of the scheme in person. For example, some co-conspirators organized and participated in a national conference in Columbus, Ohio in April 2015 in which they provided “deep impact training” and techniques for affiliates to convince homeowners to enroll in Bolden Pinnacle Group and Silverstein & Wolf Corporation programs.

 

Affiliates were encouraged to be aggressive in recruiting homeowners. Affiliates used online databases and court records to identify vulnerable, financially distressed homeowners who had recently received notice of foreclosure on their home.

 

According to the indictment, some co-conspirators mailed more than 22,000 postcards in the Southern District of Ohio and elsewhere promising that they could “stop foreclosure” or “stop the sheriff sale” for a fixed fee. Co-conspirators also reached out to homeowners using Craigslist ads, websites, emails and social media platforms.

 

On the promise of reducing or eliminating mortgage obligations in exchange for a fee, initial recruiters would collect payments from homeowners and refer the victims to the co-conspirator companies.

 

Among other things, the referral programs promised:

• to negotiate with mortgage lenders on the homeowners’ behalf for the purchase of the mortgage notes at a discount;
• to negotiate the sale of their home and release of their mortgage loans through a short sale and/or deed in lieu of foreclosure sale;
• to stop an imminent foreclosure sale;
• to remove the mortgage lien via a tender offer; and
• achieve short sale prices at a fraction of the value of the outstanding lien/note.

“These programs were fraudulent,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “The defendants performed virtually no negotiations on behalf of the homeowners and never successfully purchased a mortgage note or provided a new, lower-cost mortgage. They never removed a mortgage lien or performed short sales as advertised.”

 

Further, defendants represented that they had “proprietary” methods or “legal tactics” to help homeowners stall or completely avoid foreclosure. In actuality, the indictment says defendants persuaded homeowners to file chapter 13 bankruptcies in order to delay foreclosure actions.

 

Defendants allegedly filed skeletal bankruptcy petitions that they called “pump fakes.” These petitions intentionally failed to disclose the co-conspirators as preparers and named the homeowners as filing pro se. Any relief from foreclosure delay was temporary until the bankruptcy court dismissed the proceeding.

 

In 2014 alone, one defendant allegedly prepared and filed petitions for 30 homeowners without their knowledge, including four homeowners in the Southern District of Ohio.

 

The indictment includes one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, four counts of mail fraud, seven counts of wire fraud, 12 counts of bankruptcy fraud, one count of bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

 

“To prey on individuals desperate to find a way to save their homes is unconscionable. What makes this crime even more egregious is the alleged methods these individuals used to lure their victims, and the extensive planning and details by these scammers to not take ‘no’ for an answer if a victim was not willing to enter their program. If you believe in karma, this is what law enforcement brought today when these scammers were arrested and brought to justice for their despicable crimes,” said Inspector in Charge Philip R. Bartlett.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FHFA-OIG, USPIS, and FBI, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Ebunoluwa A. Taiwo, who is prosecuting the case.

 

An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

 

If you believe you are a potential victim of this fraud, please contact the FBI at CIForeclosure@fbi.gov or 513-421-4310.

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CINCINNATI – Federal agents arrested a Cincinnati man this weekend on charges of defrauding the government and making false statements.

 

Gary Wipperman, 57, of Cincinnati, allegedly created fictitious court documents that included forged judges’ signatures in order to obtain housing vouchers.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Brad Geary, Special Agent in Charge, U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General, announced the charges, which were unsealed yesterday evening.

 

According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Wipperman was convicted in Greene County in 1993 of gross sexual imposition and felonious sexual penetration involving a 9 year old victim. In 1999, he was adjudged a sexual predator and required to register his residence every 90 days for life.

 

A regular data review conducted by HUD in 2018 revealed that Wipperman had registered his residence at an address that is subsidized by federal funding through HUD.

 

HUD regulations prohibit any individual who is subject to a state lifetime sex offender registration requirement from receiving assistance from HUD.

 

Follow-up investigation indicated that in 2015, Wipperman was selected from a waitlist to receive housing choice vouchers from the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority, but was denied the vouchers because of his sexual predator status.

 

Wipperman requested a review of the decision to deny him housing and HUD held an informal review hearing in February 2016.

 

Prior to that hearing date, Wipperman allegedly provided fictitious documents to HUD – some of which included forged signatures – including:

• an opinion signed by a Federal Magistrate Court Judge in the Southern District of Ohio but issued by the United States Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that claimed Wipperman was entitled to “have the same rights as one never charged and given the presumption of innocence unless convicted in a new trial”;
• an opinion from a Federal District Court Judge in the Southern District of Ohio that vacated Wipperman’s convictions;
• an opinion from a Federal Appellate Court Judge for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that ordered Wipperman “deemed innocent of all charges”;
• an opinion from a Federal Appellate Court Judge for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that found Wipperman “innocent until proven guilty in a court of law” and
• a docket sheet from the United States Supreme Court.

“According to the complaint, Wipperman went to a hearing before HUD in February 2016 and swore under oath that both the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio and the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit had declared him innocent,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “He backed those claims with supposed court documents. None of it was true.”

 

In that same month, HUD granted Wipperman permission to proceed with his application for subsidized housing, based on the aforementioned documents and hearing.

 

Since April 2016 until at least February 27, 2019, Wipperman has paid a portion of his rent using housing choice vouchers.

 

Wipperman is charged with forgery of the signature of any judge (up to five years in prison), theft of government funds (up to 10 years in prison) and making false statements (up to five years in prison).

 

“One of the fundamental missions of the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is to provide decent, safe, and affordable housing. Moreover, children, who reside in these developments must not be subject to residing close to those who are ‘lifetime sex offenders,’ Special Agent in Charge Geary said. “The HUD Office of Inspector General will vigorously pursue any individual who circumvents these regulations, thus putting the safety and welfare of our community’s most vulnerable at risk. We wish to thank the U. S. Attorney’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Veterans Affairs Police Department, and the Cincinnati Police Department for their outstanding assistance in making today’s charges possible.”

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by HUD OIG, and Assistant United States Attorneys Megan Gaffney and Matthew Singer, who are prosecuting the case.

 

A criminal complaint merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

 

If you information about defendant Gary Wipperman, please contact the Cincinnati Police Department at 513-765-1212.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Criminal complaints were unsealed today that charge three men and two women with using false or stolen Social Security numbers to lease cars and apartments and get approximately $200,000 of credit.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Tracey Thanos, Special Agent in Charge, Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General and Hilliard Police Chief Robert Fisher announced the complaints which were unsealed after the suspects were arrested.

 

The criminal complaints charge the following five central Ohio residents:

 

Tommy Edwards Jr., 28, allegedly used three fake Social Security numbers – including two numbers belonging to children – and other fake identity documents to lease a car and three apartments in the Columbus area in 2016 through 2018.

 

Kiara Mitchell, 28, is charged with using a Social Security number belonging to a child to rent an apartment in Groveport.

 

Isaiah Burnley, 19, allegedly used false Social Security numbers and forged paycheck stubs to rent apartments in 2018

 

Wayne Hamler, 34, allegedly used a forged Social Security card to lease a car in 2018.

 

China Hester, 36, used a fake Social Security number to rent an apartment in the Columbus area in 2018.

 

The complaints also allege that Edwards, Mitchell, Burnley and Hamler used the false documents to get almost $200,000 in loans and credit cards. False representation of a Social Security number is a crime punishable by up to five years in prison and fine of up to $250,000 and three years of supervised release.

 

Defendants were arrested today and will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge on the charges.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General and the assistance of the United States Marshals Service, as well as Special Assistant United States Attorney Timothy Landry, who is representing the United States in the case.

 

A criminal complaint merely contains allegations, and each defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio – A Columbus Vice Detective has been arrested and charged with crimes related to kidnapping victims under the guise of an arrest and forcing those victims to engage in sex for their freedom.

 

Andrew K. Mitchell, 55, of Sunbury, was arrested this morning by federal agents. A grand jury indicted Mitchell on March 7. The case was unsealed at Mitchell’s initial appearance in federal court today at 1:30pm.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Ohio Auditor of State Keith Faber, Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien and Interim Columbus Police Chief Thomas Quinlan announced the charges.

 

Mitchell has been employed by the Columbus Division of Police since 1988 and is currently assigned as a detective in the Vice Unit. He has been assigned to that unit since March 2017. As part of his duties, Mitchell conducts law enforcement actions for solicitation offenses.

 

According to the indictment, Mitchell, while acting under color of law, deprived victims of their civil rights, namely, the right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures.

 

Specifically, in July 2017, under the guise of an arrest, Mitchell allegedly kidnapped a victim and transported the victim to a location where the victim performed oral sex for their freedom.

 

In September 2017, Mitchell allegedly deprived a second victim of their Constitutional rights and transported the second victim to a location where he forced that victim to have vaginal sex for their freedom.

 

Again in summer 2018, it is alleged that Mitchell kidnapped the second victim under the guise of an arrest and transported the victim to a location where he forced the victim to engage in anal sex for their freedom.

 

The charging document also says Mitchell attempted to corruptly tamper with two additional victims, who are witnesses in this case. Likewise, Mitchell allegedly attempted to influence, delay and prevent the testimony of a fifth victim in an official proceeding before a federal grand jury.

 

Finally, it is alleged that Mitchell provided false information to FBI agents in September 2018 at the John Glenn International Airport by stating he had never had sex with a prostitute. In fact, it is alleged that Mitchell has had sex with numerous prostitutes, including having paid women money for sex.

 

The seven-count indictment charges Mitchell with three counts of depriving individuals of their civil rights while acting under the color of law (up to life imprisonment), two counts of witness tampering (up to 20 years in prison), one count of obstructing justice (up to 10 years in prison) and one count of making false statements to federal agents (up to five years in prison).

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI, Ohio Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI), Ohio Auditor’s Office and Columbus Division of Police, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Jessica H. Kim and Kevin W. Kelley, who are prosecuting the case.

 

An indictment merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

 

If you believe you are a potential victim related to this case, or have any relevant information, please call the FBI at 614-849-1777.

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DAYTON – Christopher Paul Murphy, 68, of Golden Valley, Ariz., was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 12 months and one day in prison for intentionally accessing a protected computer without authorization.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, announced the sentence handed down yesterday evening by U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

 

According to the statement of facts in this case, Murphy, who pleaded guilty in November 2017, intentionally attempted to access a protected computer system in October 2017 without authorization in an effort to gain information for his own private commercial gain.

 

Murphy planned to obtain client information of customers of National BiWeekly Mortgage Administration, Inc. (NBA) in Xenia. Murphy wanted to use the information to solicit customers to his own similar business.

 

The defendant attempted to obtain the information by causing an email containing malware to be sent to an NBA employee. He also provided a thumb drive to an NBA employee and directed that, in the event the malware failed, the employee should download the company’s client lists onto the thumb drive.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by the FBI and Assistant United States Attorney Brent G. Tabacchi, who is representing the United States in this case.

 

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CINCINNATI – Jake M. Damron, 27, of Loveland, Ohio, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 200 months in prison for sexually exploiting a child.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Todd Wickerham, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, Hamilton Township Police Chief Scott Hughes and the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force announced the sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Michael R. Barrett. 

 

Hamilton Township Police received a report on November 20, 2017, that Damron had taken pornographic pictures of a four year old to whom he had access. Damron was charged by a federal criminal complaint and arrested 10 days later.

 

Damron had sexual contact with the victim and was trading images of the victim for other child pornography via the Kik messenger app.

 

During an interview with FBI agents, Damron confirmed that he had taken sexually explicit photographs of the four year old. He stated this was the only victim he had photographed and that he had “probably” taken them due to easy access.

 

Damron was indicted by a grand jury in December 2017 and pleaded guilty in July 2018.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation by the FBI and the Hamilton Township Police Department, as well as Assistant United States Attorney Kyle J. Healey, who is prosecuting the case.

 

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CINCINNATI – A defendant was sentenced today in the first federally indicted carfentanil prosecution in the country.

 

Phillip Watkins, 34, of Cincinnati, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 300 months in prison for conspiring to distribute heroin laced with carfentanil and attempting to murder a witness he believed was going to testify against him if he went to trial on the drug charge.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Cincinnati Police Chief Eliot K. Isaac, Hamilton County Sheriff Jim Neil, Hamilton County Coroner Dr. Lakshmi Sammarco, other members of the Hamilton County Heroin Task Force including the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Identification in Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s Office, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, and police departments in Norwood, Blue Ash and Sharonville and Springfield Township announced the sentence imposed today U.S. District Judge Susan J. Dlott.

 

Court documents say Watkins conspired with others in August 2016 to sell heroin laced with carfentanil, an animal tranquilizer 10,000 times more powerful than morphine, from a residence in the Elmwood Place neighborhood of Cincinnati and that users suffered both fatal and non-fatal overdoses of the potent drugs he sold.

 

Task force officers arrested Watkins in September 2016 and a federal grand jury indicted him that same month.

 

While in custody awaiting trial on those drug charges, Watkins learned of a potential witness against him in that case. Watkins arranged to have that witness killed to prevent their testimony. Law enforcement uncovered the plot and stopped it before the murder could take place. A grand jury indicted Watkins for witness tampering in March 2017.

 

“There is no deadlier poison than carfentanil. In dealing that drug, Watkins showed a disregard for human life, which he then confirmed by plotting to have the witness against him killed,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “His 300-month sentence is a fitting punishment and will keep the community safe. I commend all of the law enforcement agencies participating in the Hamilton County Heroin Coalition Task Force. Their incredibly nimble work made this case possible. Enforcement efforts like these are a big part of turning the tide against synthetic opioids in Ohio.”

 

Deputy Criminal Chiefs Michael Hunter and Emily Glatfelter and Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy Oakley and Megan Gaffney represented the United States in these cases.

 

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DAYTON – A jury has convicted Ronald E. Skelton II, 23, of Springfield, of assaulting a federal agent and assaulting a Clark County Sheriff’s Office deputy assisting the federal agent.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, Yvonne DiCristiforo, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service, and Clark County Sheriff Deborah K. Burchett announced the verdict reached yesterday evening following a week-long trial before U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

 

According to court documents and testimony presented at trial, agents with the United States Secret Service and a Clark County Sheriff’s Office deputy visited Skelton’s home in March 2015 to interview Skelton regarding posts he made on social media that were perceived as threatening physical harm toward the President of the United States.

 

Law enforcement had earlier received a call stating Skelton had posted threats on Twitter. A review of Skelton’s Twitter revealed messages saying, in part, “After @BarackObama and @HillaryClinton are cooked Heading over to @JebBush to kill him and daddy” and “After I chop up @BarackObama, remember, @HillaryClinton, My ginsu is coming for YOU!”

 

Skelton had also posted graphic threats on social media about killing police officers and their children.

 

Specifically, he tweeted, “I ain’t gonna cause a great big scene or anything #Police #Cops #LawEnforcement If you wish to die Please Step Foot on my land No probs” and “I’m tired of you #Terrorist rat bastards getting away #Police #Cops #LawEnforcement And I’m done You can get a #2ndAmendment to the skull”.

 

Law enforcement officials approached Skelton in front his home during the March 2015 visit and identified themselves, showing their credentials. As they attempted to speak to Skelton, he began yelling anti-government comments and became defiant and belligerent.

 

The Sheriff’s deputy approached Skelton so he could be checked for weapons. At that point, Skelton swung and struck the deputy in the head and stuck one the Secret Service agents in the face, breaking the agent’s nose and requiring surgery.

 

A grand jury indicted Skelton in March 2015. Skelton agreed to plead guilty to the charges in January 2016 but was later permitted to withdraw his guilty plea. At trial, the jury rejected Skelton’s claim that he was insane at the time of the offenses.

 

“Secret Service agents provide physical protection to our nation’s highest elected leaders,” said U.S. Attorney Glassman. “Working together with local law enforcement, they run down, assess, and defuse potential threats virtually every day. It’s a dangerous job, and we have their backs. Yesterday’s jury verdict vindicates the need to provide whatever protection we can to the men and women who protect us.”

 

Assaulting a federal agent and inflicting bodily injury is a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Assaulting a law enforcement officer who is assisting a federal agent carries a potential maximum of eight years in prison.

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the cooperative investigation by the Secret Service and Clark County Sheriff’s Office, as well as Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew J. Hunt and Dominick S. Gerace, who are representing the United States in this case. 

 

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DAYTON – The lead defendant in a Southwestern Ohio methamphetamine conspiracy pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today. Salvador Ramirez (also known as Listo), 24, of West Chester, is the final defendant to plead in this case.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio and Timothy J. Plancon, Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), announced the plea entered into today before U.S. District Judge Walter H. Rice.

 

Ramirez and six others were arrested in July 2018 on federal charges of engaging in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy in the Miami Valley and across Southern and Central Ohio. They were charged with manufacturing and distributing narcotics and laundering their proceeds.

 

As part of this case, DEA agents and task force members have seized more than 140 pounds of methamphetamine, seven kilograms of fentanyl, two kilograms of heroin and more than $130,000 in cash.

 

Co-conspirators who have already pleaded guilty include:

• Tamara McQueen, 21, Hamilton
• Luiz Roberto Diaz-Magana, 29, Queretaro, Mexico                        
• Jesus Garcia, aka “Jesse Garcia”, 49, West Chester
• Joshua L. Leach, 34, Plain City
• Brandi Danyell Loy, aka Brandi Richey, 34, Plain City
• Takeea Trammell, 41, Dayton

As part of his plea, Ramirez admitted to arranging bulk deliveries of methamphetamine, fentanyl and heroin and then overseeing redistribution of the drugs to dealers from Columbus to Dayton. He also personally collected hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug proceeds.

 

Ramirez and McQueen, as part of this scheme, traveled from Southern Ohio to California in April 2018 to acquire bulk amounts of the drugs to sell in Ohio. During their drive back to Ohio, law enforcement in Wyoming discovered their car and the contraband within it. Ramirez and McQueen, however, eluded police in Wyoming and fled back to Southern Ohio where they resumed their drug trafficking.

 

Upon returning to West Chester, Ramirez began accepting delivery of kilogram quantities of methamphetamine from Texas and elsewhere in the Southern United States. He would keep the drugs in various storage lockers throughout Southern Ohio until he could find a buyer for him.

 

Finally, as part of the conspiracy, Ramirez and his associates planned to open in Southern Ohio their own laboratory to manufacture kilogram quantities of methamphetamine. To aid this plan, Ramirez was providing housing and security for a chemist that a Mexican cartel sent to the area for the purpose of opening the laboratory.

 

Conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute this amount of methamphetamine is a crime punishable by a sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison.

 

“Today’s guilty plea of Ramirez represents the end of this organization’s ability to cause further destruction in our communities,” Special Agent in Charge Plancon said. “Methamphetamine trafficking will not be tolerated in southern Ohio and law enforcement will continue to work tirelessly to bring individuals like Ramirez to justice. This organization trafficked a variety drugs, including methamphetamine, fentanyl and heroin, that continue to cause devastation to families throughout the Miami Valley. The DEA and its partners are committed to identifying, investigating, and dismantling drug trafficking organizations that continue to prey on those addicted to drugs.”

 

Glassman commended Assistant U.S. Attorney Brent G. Tabacchi, who is representing the United States in this case, and the DEA agents and task force officers who investigated the case.

 

Investigating agencies include the Ohio State Highway Patrol, the Warren County Sheriff’s Office and the police departments in Monroe and Middletown.

 

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