Northern District of Oklahoma

The U.S. Department of Justice today announced the opening of the grant solicitation period for comprehensive funding to federally-recognized American Indian and Alaska Native tribal governments and tribal consortia to support public safety, victim services and crime prevention.

The Department’s Fiscal Year 2018 Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation, or “CTAS,” posts today at https://www.justice.gov/tribal/open-solicitations. The solicitation contains details about available grants and describes how tribes, tribal consortia and Alaskan villages can apply for the funds.

The funding can be used to enhance law enforcement; bolster adult and juvenile justice systems; prevent and control juvenile delinquency; serve native victims of crimes such as child abuse, sexual assault, domestic violence, and elder abuse; and support other efforts to combat crime.

“We’re proud to offer American Indian and Alaska Native communities opportunities to continue to improve public safety, better serve victims of crime, and strengthen criminal justice systems,” said Associate Attorney General Rachel Brand.  “CTAS projects support Native American women, ensure tribal self-determination, and further our shared goals of safe and secure communities for American Indian and Alaska Native peoples.”

United States Attorney Trent Shores stated, “I am excited to see the Justice Department reaffirm its commitment to a strong partnership with tribal nations. These grants can benefit Oklahoma Tribes by helping to address public safety challenges, including violence against women and the opioid crisis. Given Oklahoma’s patchwork jurisdiction, I am confident that these funds could strengthen community policing programs in Indian Country as well as nearby non-Indian communities.”

Applications for CTAS are submitted online through the Department’s Grants Management System. Applicants must register with the Grants Management System prior to submitting an application. The application deadline is 8:00 p.m. CDT, March 20, 2018. 

For the FY 2018 CTAS, applicants will submit a single application and select from any or all of the nine competitive grant programs referred to as “purpose areas.” This approach allows the Department’s grant-making components to consider the totality of a tribal nation’s overall public safety needs. 

The nine purpose areas are:

•     Public Safety and Community Policing

•     Comprehensive Tribal Justice Systems Strategic Planning

•     Justice Systems and Alcohol and Substance Abuse

•     Tribal Justice System Infrastructure Program

•     Violence Against Women Tribal Governments Program

•     Children’s Justice Act Partnerships for Indian Communities

•     Comprehensive Tribal Victim Assistance Program

•     Juvenile Justice Wellness Courts

•     Tribal Youth Program

In an effort to provide guidance on the Fiscal Year 2018 CTAS, the Department is sponsoring a series of webinars to educate applicants on CTAS application requirements. For details, including how to register for these webinars, visit https://www.justice.gov/tribal/open-solicitations for the webinar schedule.

Additionally, tribes and tribal consortia may also be eligible for non-tribal federal grant programs and are encouraged to explore other funding opportunities, which may be found at DOJ’s Tribal Justice and Safety website at https://www.justice.gov/tribal/open-solicitations or the www.grants.gov website.

CTAS is administered by the Department’s Offices of Justice Programs, Community Oriented Policing Services, and Violence Against Women.

Today’s announcement is part of the DOJ’s ongoing initiative to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in tribal communities.

An Oklahoma man was arrested yesterday after being charged by indictment with receipt and possession of child pornography, announced U.S. Attorney R. Trent Shores. 

Thaddus Caves, 40, of Tulsa, Oklahoma, was indicted by a federal grand jury on December 5th, with one count each of receipt of child pornography and possession of child pornography.  According to the indictment, in 2016, Caves knowingly received and possessed visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

The charges are the result of an investigation by the FBI’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.  The matter is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney William M. Grady of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey A. Gallant of the Northern District of Oklahoma.

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

TULSA, Okla.— Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell  will administer the ceremonial oath of office to United States Attorney R. Trent Shores on Friday, December 15, 2017, at 2:00 p.m.

WHO: United States Attorney R. Trent Shores

WHAT: Ceremonial Administration of the Oath of Office to United States Attorney R. Trent Shores

WHEN: 2:00 p.m. CST
4th Floor, Ceremonial Courtroom
Page Belcher Courthouse 333 West 4th Street
Tulsa, Oklahoma  74103

NOTE:  Government-issued photo I.D. (such as a driver’s license) necessary for admission to the courthouse. Point of Contact is Anna Montgomery at (918) 382-2784

U.S. Attorney R. Trent Shores announced today the appointment of Rachael F. Zintgraff as an Assistant United States Attorney with the Civil Division of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Oklahoma. As a Civil Division AUSA, Ms. Zintgraff will represent the United States in general civil cases, defending the United States.

Ms. Zintgraff joins the U.S. Attorney’s Office from Atkinson, Haskins, Nellis, Brittingham, Gladd & Fiasco, P.C., where she was a partner focused on appellate advocacy and civil litigation. Ms. Zintgraff received her undergraduate degree from Oklahoma State University and her J.D.  from the University of Tulsa College of Law, where she served as Editor-in-Chief of the Tulsa Law Review and graduated with highest honors. While a student at the University of Tulsa College of Law, Ms. Zintgraff worked as a legal intern in the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

“I am excited Rachael Zintgraff is joining our team. She will be an immediate contributor to the Civil Division and a zealous advocate for the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Shores.

District Judge John W. Dowdell sentenced Christopher Dean Nichols, 23, of Sapulpa, Oklahoma to 44 months in prison for the crime of  Conspiracy to Unlawfully Manufacture and Possess Destructive Devices. Nichols must also pay a special monetary assessment totaling $100.  After release from prison, Nichols must serve two years on supervised release.

On or about May 20-23, 2017, Nichols conspired with another person to manufacture and possess pipe bombs.  He made the bombs with materials he bought at a hardware store, including pipe and fittings.  He added explosive powder to the pipe, threaded a fuse through one end of each device and placed BBs in the devices.  The devices were not registered and were illegally manufactured and possessed. He then planted the pipe bombs in a parked vehicle at the Creek County Courthouse without the owner’s knowledge, intending to scare the owner of the vehicle. 

United States Attorney Shores stated, “If you chose to make a pipe bomb and terrorize citizens in our communities, you will be held accountable,” United States Attorney Shores said. “Let it be clear, we will not tolerate attempts to thwart courtroom processes - be they civil or criminal, federal or state - by threats and intimidation with improvised explosive devices. I commend the ATF and Creek County law enforcement for their swift actions in this investigation.”

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Sapulpa Police Department and the Tulsa Police Department Bomb Squad investigated the matter. Assistant United States Attorney Allen J. Litchfield prosecuted the case.

District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Russell Martin Mounger, 47, of Mannford, Oklahoma to 70 months in prison for the crime of Possession of Child Pornography. Mounger must also pay $10,000 in restitution to the victim, and a special monetary assessment totaling $5,100. After release from prison, Mounger will be required to register as a sex offender and must serve 7 years on supervised release.

On February 13, 2017, the Manford Police Department executed a search warrant of Mounger’s home. During the search warrant officers found several explicit videos and still images depicting children under the age of 12 involved in sexually explicit conduct.

United States Attorney Shores stated, “We will aggressively prosecute those who exploit children and possess graphic sexual images of minors.  These are some of the most important cases we prosecute because they involve some of the most vulnerable victims.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

Mannford Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the matter. First Assistant United States Attorney Clinton J. Johnson and Assistant United States Attorney Shannon Cozzoni prosecuted the case.

TULSA, Okla.—United States Attorney R. Trent Shores announced today the results of the December 2017 Federal Grand Jury.

The following individuals have been charged with violations of United States law in indictments returned by the Grand Jury.  The return of an indictment is a method of informing a defendant of alleged violations of federal law which must be proven in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt to overcome a defendant’s presumption of innocence.

Pedro Aguirre.  Drug Conspiracy. Aguirre, 24, of Tulsa, is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.  If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of life in prison and a $10,000,000 fine.  In addition, he faces a criminal forfeiture money judgment representing proceeds of the drug conspiracy.  The Drug Enforcement Administration is the investigating agency.

Jose Luis Almanza-Rodriguez.  Reentry of Removed Alien. Almanza-Rodriguez, 45, of Broken Arrow, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in July 2015 from Hidalgo, Texas. If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.

Laura Mae Campbell.  Conspiracy, Drug Conspiracy and Use of a Communication Facility in Committing, Causing and Facilitating the Commission of a Drug Trafficking Felony.  Campbell, 47, of Claremore, is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute marijuana.  If convicted, she faces the statutory maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy charges; and a statutory maximum penalty of 4 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for use of a communication facility in committing a drug trafficking felony. 

Jose Gomez-Abreu.  Reentry of Removed Alien. Gomez-Abreu, 52, of Tulsa, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in March 2012 from Calexico, California. If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.

Gloria Gonzalez.  Drug Conspiracy. Gonzalez, 20, of Tulsa, is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.  If convicted, she faces the statutory maximum penalty of life in prison and a $10,000,000 fine.  The Drug Enforcement Administration is the investigating agency.

Nathan Ross Livengood.  Possession With Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine,

Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana, Possession of Firearms in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime, and Possession of Firearms by an Unlawful User of a Controlled Substance. Livengood, 23, of Tulsa, is charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana, and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime by an unlawful user of a controlled substance.  If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of 40 years in prison and a $5,000,000 fine for possession with intent to distribution methamphetamine, the statutory maximum of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for possession with intent to distribute marijuana, the statutory maximum of life in prison and a $250,000 fine for possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and the statutory maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for possession of firearms by an unlawful user of a controlled substance.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is the investigating agency.

Clifford Wayne Lucas.  Drug Conspiracy. Lucas, 37, of Tulsa, is charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.  If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of life in prison and a $10,000,000 fine.  The Drug Enforcement Administration is the investigating agency.

Anthony Ronnie Martinez.  Conspiracy, Felon in Possession of Firearms and Ammunition, Steal and Unlawfully Carry Away Firearms from a Licensed Dealer, Possess, Receive, Conceal, Store, Barter, Sell, and Dispose of Stolen Firearms and Ammunition.  Martinez, 44, of Tulsa, is charged with conspiracy to steal and unlawfully carry away firearms from a licensed dealer and to possess, receive, conceal, store, barter, sell, and dispose of stolen firearms and ammunition.  If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for conspiracy, the statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for felon in possession of firearms and ammunition, the statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for stealing and unlawfully carrying away firearms from a licensed dealer, and the statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for possessing, receiving, concealing, storing, bartering, selling, and disposing of stolen firearms and ammunition.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is the investigating agency.

Edd Tawon Payne and Emmanuel Peter Britto.  Conspiracy and Bank Robbery.  Payne, 33, and Britto, 44, residences unknown, are charged with conspiracy to commit bank robbery and bank robbery.  If convicted, they face the statutory maximum penalty of 25 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy and the statutory maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the bank robbery.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tulsa Police Department are the investigating agencies.

Victor Alan Siegrist. Bank Larceny. Siegrist, 54, of Vinita, is charged with bank larceny. If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tulsa Police Department are the investigating agencies.

Aaron Robert Still.  Possession of Marijuana With Intent to Distribute, Possession of Firearms in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime, and Receipt of a Firearm by a Person Under Indictment.  Still, 20, of Tulsa, is charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment. If convicted, he faces the statutory maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, the statutory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and the statutory maximum penalty of 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for receipt of a firearm by a person under indictment.  In addition, he faces  forfeiture of drug proceeds, seized currency, firearms and ammunition.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is the investigating agency.

After a non-jury trial, United States District Court Judge John E. Dowdell entered a Judgment yesterday in the amount of $296,000 against Darnell E. Blackmon, M.D., for 430 violations of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act.  The violations occurred while Dr. Blackmon was the Medical Director of Enhanced Skin and Body Medical Spa.

Judge Dowdell found that Dr. Blackmon permitted registered nurses to examine and determine the type and course of treatment for patients, and prescribe and/or administer testosterone and phentermine (controlled substances) in his absence and without the presence of another licensed physician.  All of this occurred outside the course of his professional practice and with no doctor-patient relationship, as required by the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act. Additionally, the Court found Dr. Blackmon failed to obtain a Drug Enforcement Administration registration for the dispensing activities at the spa and failed to maintain controlled substance records as required by the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act.

“Any healthcare practitioner who violates the law and puts the public’s health and safety at risk should know we will use all tools at our disposal to hold them accountable as the gatekeepers to controlled substances. This Judgment should alert all practitioners to their responsibilities under the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act,” said United States Attorney Shores.

The case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Marianne Hardcastle.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions today announced the appointment of nine new U.S. Attorneys to serve two-year terms on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee of U.S. Attorneys (AGAC). The AGAC was created in 1973 and reports to the Attorney General through the Deputy Attorney General. AGAC represents the U.S. Attorneys and provides advice and counsel to the Attorney General on matters of policy, procedure, and management impacting the Offices of the U.S. Attorneys.

The new appointees include: U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama Richard Moore; U.S. Attorney for the District of Utah John W. Huber; U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jessie K. Liu; U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio Justin E. Herdman; U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina Robert Higdon; U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma Robert Trent Shores; U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana Joshua Minkler; U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri Jeff Jensen; and Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska Bryan Schroder.

U.S. Attorney Richard Moore will serve as the Chair of AGAC, and U.S. Attorney John W. Huber will serve as the Vice Chair.

“I am pleased to announce the first members of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee under this administration. These U.S. Attorneys will play an important role in carrying out the Department of Justice’s mission to reduce violent crime, combat transnational crimination organizations, secure our southern border, end the devastating opioid crisis, and return to the rule of law,” said Attorney General Sessions.

“I am honored to serve on Attorney General Sessions’ Advisory Committee,” stated US Attorney Shores. “I will rely on my experience as a career prosecutor who has worked on a diverse variety of cases - from violent crimes in Indian Country to public corruption to transnational human trafficking organizations - to provide counsel that helps to accomplish our core mission of serving justice, as outlined by the Attorney General.”

A brief bio on each nominee is below:

Richard Moore (Chair)

The Senate confirmed Richard Moore’s appointment as United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama in September 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Moore served as the Inspector General for the Tennessee Valley Authority.  From May 2009 to March 2011, Mr. Moore was the Chairman of the Investigations Committee for the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency.  Prior to this position, Mr. Moore served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama from 1985 to 2003.  From 1997 to 1998, Mr. Moore was an Atlantic Fellow in Public Policy at Oxford University in England.  Mr. Moore received his B.S., summa cum laude, from Spring Hill College and his J.D. from the Samford University Cumberland School of Law.

John W. Huber (Vice Chair)

Since June 2015, John Huber has served as the United States Attorney for the District of Utah, and in August 2017, the Senate again confirmed his appointment.  Prior to being United States Attorney, Mr. Huber served as an Assistant United States Attorney for thirteen years.  Mr. Huber began his prosecutorial career in the Weber County (Utah) Attorney’s Office, and later served as the Chief Prosecutor for West Valley City, Utah, before joining the United States Attorney’s Office in 2002.  Mr. Huber received his B.A. from the University of Utah and his J.D. from the University of Utah College of Law.

Justin E. Herdman

The Senate confirmed Justin Herdman’s appointment as United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio in August 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Herdman was a partner at Jones Day and an Assistant United States Attorney in Cleveland, Ohio.  Mr. Herdman previously served as an Assistant District Attorney in New York City from 2001 to 2005 and as an associate at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease, LLP.  He is currently a Judge Advocate General in the United States Air Force Reserve.  Mr. Herdman received his B.A. from Ohio University, his Master of Philosophy from the University of Glasgow and his J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Robert Higdon

The Senate confirmed Robert Higdon to be United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina in October 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Higdon was a partner at the law firm of Williams Mullen.  He previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney in both the Western and Eastern Districts of North Carolina.  In the Eastern District U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Higdon served as Chief of the Criminal Division for more than 11 years.  Mr. Higdon also served as senior trial counsel in the Public Integrity Section of the Department of Justice.  He received his B.A., cum laude, from Wake Forest University and his J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law.

Jeff Jensen

The Senate confirmed Jeff Jensen to be United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri in October 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Jensen was a partner at Husch Blackwell LLP.  He served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Missouri starting in 1999, and was Executive United States Attorney from 2005 to 2009.  Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Jensen was an FBI Special Agent from 1989 to 1999.  While working at the FBI, Mr. Jensen attended St. Louis University School of Law at night, graduating magna cum laude.  He also received his B.A., cum laude, from Indiana University School of Business.

Jessie K. Liu

The Senate confirmed Jessie Liu to be United States Attorney for the District of Columbia in September 2017.  Ms. Liu was previously Deputy General Counsel for the United States Department of the Treasury and a partner at the law firms of Morrison & Foerster LLP and Jenner & Block LLP.  In addition, she has served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Columbia and in several senior positions in the United States Department of Justice, including as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Rights Division, counsel to the Deputy Attorney General, and deputy chief of staff for the National Security Division.  Ms. Liu clerked for then-Chief Judge Carolyn Dineen King of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.  She received her A.B., summa cum laude, from Harvard University and her J.D. from Yale Law School.

Joshua Minkler

The Senate confirmed Joshua Minkler to be United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana in October 2017.  Since June 2015, Mr. Minkler had served as the interim United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana.  Prior to that position, he served for 21 years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of Indiana.  Before he joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Minkler served for five years as an assistant prosecuting attorney in the Office of the Kent County Michigan Prosecuting Attorney.  Mr. Minkler received his B.A. from Wabash College, and his J.D. from Indiana University Maurer School of Law.  

Bryan Schroder

Bryan Schroder’s nomination to be United States Attorney for the District of Alaska is pending in the Senate.  Mr. Schroder is currently the Acting United States Attorney for the District of Alaska, and previously served as the First Assistant United States Attorney and Criminal Chief.  Mr. Schroder has served in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for more than 11 years.  Mr. Schroder is a retired Captain in the U.S. Coast Guard, having served for 24 years.  Mr. Schroder graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and the University of Washington School of Law.

Robert Trent Shores

The Senate confirmed Robert Trent Shores to be United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma in September 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Shores was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Northern District of Oklahoma.  Mr. Shores previously served as First Assistant Attorney General for the State of Oklahoma and deputy director for the Department of Justice’s Office of Tribal Justice, where he developed initiatives to promote public safety in Indian Country.  Mr. Shores received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University and his J.D. from the University of Oklahoma College of Law.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions today announced the appointment of nine new U.S. Attorneys to serve two-year terms on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee of U.S. Attorneys (AGAC). AGAC was created in 1973 and reports to the Attorney General through the Deputy Attorney General. AGAC represents the U.S. Attorneys and provides advice and counsel to the Attorney General on matters of policy, procedure, and management impacting the Offices of the U.S. Attorneys.

The new appointees include: U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama Richard Moore; U.S. Attorney for the District of Utah John W. Huber; U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jessie K. Liu; U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio Justin E. Herdman; U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina Robert Higdon; U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma Trent Shores; U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana Joshua Minkler; U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri Jeff Jensen; and Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska Bryan Schroder.

U.S. Attorney Richard Moore will serve as the Chair of AGAC, and U.S. Attorney John W. Huber will serve as the Vice Chair.

“I am pleased to announce the first members of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee under this administration. These U.S. Attorneys will play an important role in carrying out the Department of Justice’s mission to reduce violent crime, combat transnational crimination organizations, secure our southern border, end the devastating opioid crisis, and return to the rule of law,” said Attorney General Sessions.

A brief bio on each nominee is below: Richard Moore (Chair)
The Senate confirmed Richard Moore’s appointment as United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama in September 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Moore served as the Inspector General for the Tennessee Valley Authority.  From May 2009 to March 2011, Mr. Moore was the Chairman of the Investigations Committee for the Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency.  Prior to this position, Mr. Moore served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama from 1985 to 2003.  From 1997 to 1998, Mr. Moore was an Atlantic Fellow in Public Policy at Oxford University in England.  Mr. Moore received his B.S., summa cum laude, from Spring Hill College and his J.D. from the Samford University Cumberland School of Law.

John W. Huber (Vice Chair)
Since June 2015, John Huber has served as the United States Attorney for the District of Utah, and in August 2017, the Senate again confirmed his appointment.  Prior to being United States Attorney, Mr. Huber served as an Assistant United States Attorney for thirteen years.  Mr. Huber began his prosecutorial career in the Weber County (Utah) Attorney’s Office, and later served as the Chief Prosecutor for West Valley City, Utah, before joining the United States Attorney’s Office in 2002.  Mr. Huber received his B.A. from the University of Utah and his J.D. from the University of Utah College of Law.

Justin E. Herdman
The Senate confirmed Justin Herdman’s appointment as United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio in August 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Herdman was a partner at Jones Day and an Assistant United States Attorney in Cleveland, Ohio.  Mr. Herdman previously served as an Assistant District Attorney in New York City from 2001 to 2005 and as an associate at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease, LLP.  He is currently a Judge Advocate General in the United States Air Force Reserve.  Mr. Herdman received his B.A. from Ohio University, his Master of Philosophy from the University of Glasgow and his J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Robert Higdon
The Senate confirmed Robert Higdon to be United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina in October 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Higdon was a partner at the law firm of Williams Mullen.  He previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney in both the Western and Eastern Districts of North Carolina.  In the Eastern District U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Higdon served as Chief of the Criminal Division for more than 11 years.  Mr. Higdon also served as senior trial counsel in the Public Integrity Section of the Department of Justice.  He received his B.A., cum laude, from Wake Forest University and his J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law.

Jeff Jensen
The Senate confirmed Jeff Jensen to be United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri in October 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Jensen was a partner at Husch Blackwell LLP.  He served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Missouri starting in 1999, and was Executive United States Attorney from 2005 to 2009.  Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Jensen was an FBI Special Agent from 1989 to 1999.  While working at the FBI, Mr. Jensen attended St. Louis University School of Law at night, graduating magna cum laude.  He also received his B.A., cum laude, from Indiana University School of Business.

Jessie K. Liu
The Senate confirmed Jessie Liu to be United States Attorney for the District of Columbia in September 2017.  Ms. Liu was previously Deputy General Counsel for the United States Department of the Treasury and a partner at the law firms of Morrison & Foerster LLP and Jenner & Block LLP.  In addition, she has served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Columbia and in several senior positions in the United States Department of Justice, including as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Rights Division, counsel to the Deputy Attorney General, and deputy chief of staff for the National Security Division.  Ms. Liu clerked for then-Chief Judge Carolyn Dineen King of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.  She received her A.B., summa cum laude, from Harvard University and her J.D. from Yale Law School.

Joshua Minkler
The Senate confirmed Joshua Minkler to be United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana in October 2017.  Since June 2015, Mr. Minkler had served as the interim United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana.  Prior to that position, he served for 21 years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of Indiana.  Before he joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Mr. Minkler served for five years as an assistant prosecuting attorney in the Office of the Kent County Michigan Prosecuting Attorney.  Mr. Minkler received his B.A. from Wabash College, and his J.D. from Indiana University Maurer School of Law.  

Bryan Schroder
Bryan Schroder’s nomination to be United States Attorney for the District of Alaska is pending in the Senate.  Mr. Schroder is currently the Acting United States Attorney for the District of Alaska, and previously served as the First Assistant United States Attorney and Criminal Chief.  Mr. Schroder has served in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for more than 11 years.  Mr. Schroder is a retired Captain in the U.S. Coast Guard, having served for 24 years.  Mr. Schroder graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and the University of Washington School of Law.

R. Trent Shores
The Senate confirmed Robert Trent Shores to be United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma in September 2017.  Prior to this appointment, Mr. Shores was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Northern District of Oklahoma.  Mr. Shores previously served as First Assistant Attorney General for the State of Oklahoma and deputy director for the Department of Justice’s Office of Tribal Justice, where he developed initiatives to promote public safety in Indian Country.  Mr. Shores received his undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University and his J.D. from the University of Oklahoma College of Law.

TULSA, Okla.—Today, United States Attorney R. Trent Shores announced that a grand jury handed down an indictment against thirteen defendants, charging them with Conspiracy to Possess with the Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine, Distribution of Methamphetamine and Unlawful Use of a Communication Facility.  The defendants charged are Keni Patricio Garcia-Soberanis, a/k/a “Danny”, Antonio Soberanis-Garcia, a/k/a “Carlos Garcia”, Jose Angel Garcia, a/k/a “Chino”, Jose Acosta-Soberanis, Madeline Pearl Lavalley a/k/a “Maddie”, Latasha Jo Thompson, Deborah Renee Burns a/k/a “Debbie Burns”, Baley Lynn Enloe a/k/a “Bailey Enloe”, Deborah Renee Enloe, Clayton Lambert, Nickolas Allen Lollis, Justin Daniel Jordan, and James Christopher Martin, a/k/a “Too Tall”.

The indictment alleges the drug conspiracy began in December 2015 and continued through September 2017.  According to the indictment, Keni Garcia-Soberanis was a source of supply for methamphetamine distributed by multiple mid-level and street level dealers.   Soberanis relied on Thompson, Lavalley, Jose Angel Garcia, and Antonio Soberanis-Garcia who, on numerous occasions, delivered distribution amounts of methamphetamine to Burns, Baley Enloe, Deborah Enloe, Lambert, Lollis, Jordan, and Martin.  The indictment further alleges that Keni Garcia-Soberanis, Antonio Soberanis-Garcia and Jose Acosta-Soberanis stored bulk quantities of methamphetamine and drug proceeds at two different locations.

At this time, Keni Patricio Garcia-Soberanis, Antonio Soberanis-Garcia, Jose Angel Garcia, Jose Acosta-Soberanis, Madeline Pearl Lavalley, and Deborah Renee Enloe remain at-large. 

“The United States Attorney’s Office continues to work with the Tulsa Police Department and FBI to keep methamphetamine out of our community. We want to reduce its availability, drive up its price, and reduce its purity and addictiveness.” USA Shores said. “Drug traffickers who peddle their wares in the Northern District of Oklahoma should be on notice that they will be prosecuted in a federal court of law.”

Tulsa Police Chief Chuck Jordan commented upon the partnership between federal and local authorities and stated, “Investigations and prosecutions such as these would not be possible without the strong partnership between the Tulsa Police Department and the United States Attorney’s Office. We appreciate the opportunity to be able to collaborate with them on this investigation.”

The Indictment is part of Operation “Cloverfield,” an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Tulsa Police Department (TPD) conducted the joint investigation with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), and Task Force Officers assigned to the FBI-Safe Streets Task Force.  Assistant United States Attorney Joel-lyn A. McCormick is prosecuting the case. 

The return of an indictment is a method of informing a defendant of alleged federal crimes which must be proven in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt to overcome a defendant’s presumption of innocence.

TULSA, Okla.— R. Trent Shores, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma, announced that the Grand Jury handed down a “True Bill” and issued an Indictment against five defendants, charging them with eight counts to include heroin conspiracy, possession of heroin with intent to distribute and distribution of heroin.  The defendants charged are: Martin Estaban-Flores, a/k/a “Martin Esteban Flores-Gamez”, age 27; Wilber Ramirez, a/k/a “Carlos Gonzales Rosales”, a/k/a “Tadeo”, age 27; Antonio Mauro Inda-Ibarra, a/k/a “Guillermo Samuel Inda-Perez”, a/k/a “Tono”, age 25; Richardo Desantiago Garcia, a/k/a “Eder Cervantes Garcia”, a/k/a “Jose Ramon Beltran Torres”, a/k/a “Sinaloa”, age 40; Angel Verdin Martinez, a/k/a “Gabino”, age 22.

The Indictment alleges that the five defendants are part of a heroin distribution network that mirrors the delivery systems of national pizza restaurants.  According to the Indictment, Flores acted as the dispatcher, receiving calls from customers who placed orders for heroin.  After receiving the orders, Flores then directed those customers to specific locations where delivery drivers, such as Inda-Ibarra, Inda-Perez and Martinez, met the customers.  Upon meeting, the delivery drivers distributed to the customers balloons containing one gram of heroin at a cost of $100 per balloon.  The turnaround time for one of these heroin sales was usually about 30 minutes.  The Indictment further alleges that the defendants distributed quantities of heroin and used communication facilities (cellular telephones) to facilitate the sale of heroin.

On October 16, 2017, FBI Special Agents and Task Force Officers executed a federal search warrant for Room 217 of the Quality Inn at 10829 East 41st Street in Tulsa, Oklahoma.  Law enforcement agents observed Flores and Ramirez enter the room and, utilizing a wiretapped phone, they overheard what sounded like the packaging of heroin.  During the search, law enforcement agents seized approximately four kilograms of suspected heroin, over $1,200 in cash, eight cell phones, and assorted drug paraphernalia and processing equipment.  Additionally, the Indictment alleges that both Inda-Ibarra and Inda-Perez sold quantities of heroin to an undercover officer while they acted as delivery drivers.

“Heroin and illegal opiate drugs are poisoning our local communities,” said United States Attorney Shores.  “The four kilograms of heroin seized by law enforcement represented approximately 16,000 doses with an approximate street value of $400,000 to $500,000.  The United States Attorney’s Office stands ready to work with federal, state, local, and tribal partners to aggressively prosecute those who would seek to profit from the trafficking of heroin.”

The Indictment is part of “Operation: Papa Juan’s”, an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) and High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) investigation.  The FBI, with the assistance of the Tulsa Police Department and the Broken Arrow Police Department, is the primary investigating agency, joined by the DEA HIDTA Task Force.  Assistant United States Attorney Robert T. Raley is prosecuting the case on behalf of the United States.

THE RETURN OF AN INDICTMENT IS A METHOD OF INFORMING A DEFENDANT OF ALLEGED FEDERAL CRIMES WHICH MUST BE PROVEN IN A COURT OF LAW BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT TO OVERCOME A DEFENDANT’S PRESUMPTION OF INNOCENCE.

TULSA, Okla.— DEA’s Tulsa Office, which covers the Northern District of Oklahoma, collected 904 lbs. pounds of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs for disposal at its ten collection sites. This represents an increase of over 300% from collections received on April 30, 2016.

United States Attorney R. Trent Shores stated "Prosecution is one way - but not the only way - to battle the opioid epidemic. Prevention and education are also key. I am pleased to see that Oklahomans took advantage of this opportunity to safely dispose of expired and unused prescription drugs sitting in their homes. I am thankful to the DEA and our local law enforcement partners for making drug take back day a success."

Americans nationwide did their part to reduce the opioid crisis by bringing the DEA and its more than 4,200 local and tribal law enforcement partners a record-setting 912,305 pounds—456 tons—of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs for disposal at more than 5,300 collection sites. That is almost six tons more than was collected at last spring’s event. This brings the total amount of prescription drugs collected by DEA since the fall of 2010 to 9,015,668 pounds, or 4,508 tons.

Now in its 8th year, this event continues to remove ever-higher amounts of opioids and other medicines from the nation’s homes, where they could be stolen and abused by family members and visitors, including children and teens. The DEA action comes just days after President Donald J. Trump announced the mobilization of his entire Administration to address drug addiction and opioid abuse by directing the declaration of a Nationwide Public Health Emergency to address the opioids crisis.

“More people start down the path of addiction through the misuse of opioid prescription drugs than any other substance. The abuse of these prescription drugs has fueled the nation’s opioid epidemic, which has led to the highest rate of overdose deaths this country has ever seen,” said Acting Administrator Robert W. Patterson. “This is a crisis that must be addressed from multiple angles.  Educating the public and removing these medications from households across the Unites States prevents misuse where it often starts.”

This year, DEA worked with its tribal law enforcement partners to set up 115 collection sites on tribal lands, five of which were in the Northern District of Oklahoma. Opioid addiction impacts Native American communities just as it does all parts of American society. By partnering with FBI, BIA, and tribal law enforcement, the DEA was able to greatly expand tribal participation in the Take Back program. DEA remains committed to supporting public safety in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. 

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs.  Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. DEA launched its prescription drug take back program when both the Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration advised the public that their usual methods for disposing of unused medicines—flushing them down the toilet or throwing them in the trash—posed potential safety and health hazards.

Helping people to dispose of potentially harmful prescription drugs is just one way DEA is working to reduce the addiction and overdose deaths plaguing this country due to opioid medications. 

Complete results for DEA’s fall Take Back Day are available at www.deatakeback.com. DEA’s next Prescription Drug Take Back Day is April 28, 2018.

Chairman Hoeven, Vice-Chairman Udall, and Members of the Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today about three important bills pertaining to critical justice issues in Indian Country: S. 1870, Securing Urgent Resources Vital to Indian Victim Empowerment Act 2017; S. 1953, Reauthorization of the Tribal and Law Order Act of 2010; and S. 1942, “Savanna’s Act.”  It is truly an honor to be here, not only as a United States Attorney representing the Justice Department, but also as an Oklahoman and as a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. I began my legal career at the Department’s Office of Tribal Justice, meeting with tribal leaders from across the Country and even helping to draft testimony for officials who testified before this Committee.
Fifteen years later, I am an experienced career prosecutor who has seen firsthand the very real challenges that these bills seek to address. As I reviewed the content of these bills, I am confident that we can—and will—work together to improve public safety in Native communities. It is our duty to do so as we seek to uphold our federal trust responsibility.

The three bills address some of the biggest threats to public safety in Native communities. Violent crime and substance abuse occurs at higher rates in Indian country than anywhere else in the United States. That is unacceptable. There are not enough resources to cover all of the needs of law enforcement and victim service providers working in and around Indian country.  Too many correctional facilities in Indian country are overcrowded or substandard such that they cannot maintain sight and sound separation between adult and juvenile detainees.  Furthermore, the need for treatment services is widespread and urgent. Like many areas of our Country, Indian communities have been plagued by the scourge of the opioid epidemic.  We must improve our services and programs for Native juveniles involved in the justice system, and we need better law enforcement tools and techniques to respond to cases of missing and murdered Native peoples, especially Native women.

As the United States Attorney in the Northern District of Oklahoma, and throughout my years of experience working on tribal justice issues, I have seen and heard from tribal leaders, law enforcement, social service providers, and victims about the challenges that exist on-the-ground in Native communities. There are 39 federally recognized tribes in Oklahoma, and 14 of those are in my District. We have large tribes like the Cherokee Nation and Muscogee (Creek) Nation and smaller tribes such as the Pawnee, Miami, or Delaware Tribes. We prosecute a diverse array of violent crimes and encounter too many victims who do not have the resources they so desperately need.

As a federal prosecutor, I have stood next to a hospital bed while a victim of domestic violence recounted the horrific details of how her lip was busted, her head concussed, her tooth knocked out, her arm broken, and her eye blackened. I listened to her cry as she explained that her boyfriend had flown into a fit of rage. I remember learning that the boyfriend had a history of domestic violence and that multiple women had sought protective orders against him. And I remember the disappointment when the victim notified us that she did not want to testify for fear of repercussions.  While we were still able to successfully prosecute the boyfriend in this case, far too often tribal, state, and federal prosecutions of domestic violence offenders are unsuccessful because of witness and evidentiary problems. In this and similar moments, it was crucial that I had with me federal and tribal law enforcement agents and a victim-witness specialist to ensure that we met the needs of the prosecution and the victim. Multi-jurisdictional and multi-disciplinary teams are important in these types of cases, just as they also are in sexual assault and child sexual assault prosecutions.

In 2008, I sat on the floor of a doublewide trailer in rural Oklahoma with a BIA investigator and Cherokee Nation Marshal as we tried to build rapport with a twelve-year-old girl who had been repeatedly raped by her father for a period of years. The victim had been so victimized that she communicated by adopting the characteristics of horses, that is, she whinnied, snorted, and stamped her feet. You see, the horses in the field behind her house were the only thing in her life that had not hurt her. They were her friends. After months of intense work with our prosecution team and counselors, that same little girl—and two of her friends who had also been raped by her father—bravely testified in front of a jury and in front of her father. He was found guilty and is now spending life in a federal penitentiary.

Members of the Committee, there are many more cases like these—domestic violence, sexual assaults, child abuse—that require resources to be successfully investigated and prosecuted, and to help give a voice to victims. These bills seek to provide some of those critical resources and I thank you.  

Thanks to the ongoing efforts of this Committee, federal agencies, and the Tribes, we are making progress in improving public safety in Native communities.  Since the passage of the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 we are making progress in ensuring that Tribes are able to access law enforcement databases, which is critical to meeting public safety needs.  We have expanded funding and training opportunities, established more productive protocols based on our government-to-government relationship with the Tribes, and have sought to be more clearly accountable for our efforts.       

In the Northern District of Oklahoma, I am blessed to have a great relationship with the fourteen federally recognized tribes. My Tribal Liaison, Shannon Bears Cozzoni, regularly travels to Indian Country where, together with other federal prosecutors, she provides a variety of training to tribal law enforcement officials to help them obtain Special Law Enforcement Commissions to enforce federal law in Indian Country. As a former tribal liaison myself, I can assure you this position is crucial for United States Attorney’s Offices and there are no more dedicated advocates for justice in Indian Country. The funding of training programs for tribal law enforcement through District-focused initiatives and the National Advocacy Center serves to improve the investigative skills of law enforcement, social service providers, and prosecutors working in Indian Country. Similarly, the creation of the Native American Issues Coordinator at the Executive Office for United States Attorneys and the formal establishment of the Office of Tribal Justice has given United States Attorneys with Indian Country in their Districts an ever-present voice in the halls of the Justice Department in DC even when we are not physically present. The Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 has been good for Indian Country and good for those of us working to ensure justice in Indian country.

Each bill proposes new methods and refined approaches to addressing major threats to public safety.  Savanna’s Act addresses a tragic set of cases: missing and murdered individuals, often women, in Indian country.  The Department of Justice supports the goals of this bill and the effort to take on this dark and tragic issue.  We have identified some technical issues in the course of our review. For example, Section 1 of the bill references the Automated Integrated Fingerprint Identification System, which has been replaced with the Next Generation Identification System. We welcome the opportunity to work with your staffs to assist in making some technical adjustments.

The SURVIVE Act addresses a long-time issue in Indian country: a lack of resources to support the level of victim services warranted by the levels of violent crime in Indian country.  The importance of providing effective services to victims of crime cannot be overstated.  From any angle—humanitarian, law enforcement, community relations—it is both right and necessary.  A number of the Department of Justice comments on an earlier version of this Act were incorporated into the current bill, which we recognize and appreciate.  We note that the Act includes a consultation requirement.  In fact, the Department, through the Office for Victims of Crime, has already begun making plans for formal consultations and listening sessions with tribes, with the first listening session having occurred in Milwaukee on October 18, 2017. Our review of this bill is ongoing, and welcome discussion with your staffs as we make progress towards a formal Administration response.  

The Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 was a significant and extremely positive piece of legislation.  As a result of that legislation, the Department of Justice is making significant progress on improving public safety in Indian country.  This Committee has received previous testimony from this Department on the many ways that the 2010 Tribal Law and Order Act altered and improved the way that we work in Indian country and with our federal partners and we agree with the Committee’s efforts to do more.  Our review of this bill is also ongoing, so while we do not yet have a formal position to offer we do applaud efforts to compel greater improvements in law enforcement, data sharing, and justice for Native American and Alaska Native children.  We are particularly heartened that you intend to extend the Bureau of Prisons pilot project and included support for our Tribal Access Program, which will help us expand that opportunity to more Tribes.      

In our review, we noted a recurring effort to improve data collection and information sharing.  The Department is unequivocally in favor of efforts to improve collection of and access to data whenever we can do so without harming victim confidentiality or jeopardizing an investigation.  We are working internally to find immediate opportunities for improvement.  And we will continue to work with our partner agencies, with Tribes, and with your staffs on data collection and information sharing issues.  

The Department is actively engaged in efforts to address the specific challenges described in the bills and is committed to working with Congress, other federal agencies, and Tribes to more effectively address them.  We seek, whenever possible, to expand Tribes’ opportunities for funding, training, and technical assistance.  Our partnerships with Tribes and with other agencies active in Indian country are an integral part of our daily work, which we continually review to ensure that our work is productive and focused on the needs of the Tribes.  

While we have further to go, we are far ahead of many nations in recognizing and protecting the rights of native peoples.  Around the world, indigenous peoples are marginalized, exploited, or threatened with death—denied basic human rights, women abused, indigenous cultures destroyed, languages lost.  With your continued leadership, the United States can lead by example to promote and protect the inherent rights of indigenous people.  Recently, missing and murdered indigenous women was a topic of discussion during a June meeting of the Attorneys General for the U.S., Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia.  In that meeting, Attorney General Sessions voiced support for the creation of a working group that would allow us to expand our partnerships in addressing this grievous issue.        

As indicated earlier, the Department of Justice fully supports the goals of these three bills.  The bills under discussion today are clearly intended to spur further progress, specifically in support of law enforcement, in providing effective services to victims of crime, and in shedding light on the tragic number of missing and murdered individuals in Indian country.  The Department’s review of the bills is ongoing; some offices have already reached out to discuss some of the technical aspects of the bills, and we welcome the opportunity to continue working with your staffs to refine language.  

We have made great progress, but we know we have a ways to go before we reach our shared goal of achieving lasting public safety in Indian country.  We appreciate the efforts by this Committee to ensure that legislation affecting Native communities puts Federal, State, and Tribal agencies in the best possible position to overcome barriers to public safety.  Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you today. Thank you also for the opportunity to share with you some perspective from the United States Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Oklahoma.  I am happy to answer any questions you may have.

U.S. Attorney R. Trent Shores announced the DEA will hold the 14th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, October 28th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at ten collection sites throughout the Northern District of Oklahoma. The event is an effort to rid homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs.

“I encourage Oklahomans to take advantage of this opportunity to safely dispose of outdated and unused prescription drugs collecting at their homes.” USA Shores said. “Unused prescription drugs just laying around the house may unintentionally create the opportunity for their improper use or fuel an addiction problem.”

Last April Americans turned in 450 tons (900,000 pounds) of prescription drugs at almost 5,500 sites operated by the DEA and more than 4,200 of its state and local law enforcement partners. Overall, in its 13 previous Take Back events, DEA and its partners have taken in over 8.1 million pounds—more than 4,050 tons—of pills. The disposal service is free and anonymous, no questions asked. (The DEA cannot accept needles or sharps.  The DEA can accept pills, patches, and tightly sealed liquids.)

Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 91 Americans die each day from an opioid overdose. Some painkiller abusers move on to heroin: Four out of five new heroin users started with painkillers.

Flushing medications down the toilet or throwing them in the trash pose potential safety and health hazards. This initiative addresses the public safety and public health issues that surround medications languishing in home cabinets, becoming highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse.

The collection sites in the Northern District of Oklahoma are:

• Bartlesville Police Department - 615 S. Johnstone Avenue, Bartlesville, OK  74003         
• BIA-OJS Miami Agency - 34 A Street, Miami, OK 74355  
• Miami Nation Tribal Police - 3401 P. Street,  Miami, OK  74335   
• Osage Nation Police Department - 627 Grandview Ave, Pawhuska, OK 74056     
• Tulsa Police Department - 12466 E 21st St, Tulsa, OK 74129         
• Tulsa Police Department - Patrick Henry Elementary School, 3820 E. 41st Street, Tulsa, OK 74135 
• Craig County Sheriff's Office - 210 W. Delaware Ave. #101, Vinita, OK 74301    
• Vinita Police Department - 104 E. Illinois Avenue, Vinita, OK 74301        
• Wyandotte Tribal Police Department - 64700 E. Hwy 60, Wyandotte, OK 74370  
• Eastern Shawnee Tribal Police Department - 10250 South 695 Rd, Wyandotte, OK 74370

For more information or to locate a collection site nearest you go the DEA Prescription Drug Take Back Day web site at https://takebackday.dea.gov/#collection-locator where you can search by zip code, city, or state.

Chairman Hoeven, Vice-Chairman Udall, and Members of the Committee: Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today about three important bills pertaining to critical justice issues in Indian Country: S. 1870, Securing Urgent Resources Vital to Indian Victim Empowerment Act 2017; S. 1953, Reauthorization of the Tribal and Law Order Act of 2010; and S. 1942, “Savanna’s Act.”  It is truly an honor to be here, not only as a United States Attorney representing the Justice Department, but also as an Oklahoman and as a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. I began my legal career at the Department’s Office of Tribal Justice, meeting with tribal leaders from across the Country and even helping to draft testimony for officials who testified before this Committee.

Fifteen years later, I am an experienced career prosecutor who has seen firsthand the very real challenges that these bills seek to address. As I reviewed the content of these bills, I am confident that we can—and will—work together to improve public safety in Native communities. It is our duty to do so as we seek to uphold our federal trust responsibility.

The three bills address some of the biggest threats to public safety in Native communities. Violent crime and substance abuse occurs at higher rates in Indian country than anywhere else in the United States. That is unacceptable. There are not enough resources to cover all of the needs of law enforcement and victim service providers working in and around Indian country.  Too many correctional facilities in Indian country are overcrowded or substandard such that they cannot maintain sight and sound separation between adult and juvenile detainees.  Furthermore, the need for treatment services is widespread and urgent. Like many areas of our Country, Indian communities have been plagued by the scourge of the opioid epidemic.  We must improve our services and programs for Native juveniles involved in the justice system, and we need better law enforcement tools and techniques to respond to cases of missing and murdered Native peoples, especially Native women.

As the United States Attorney in the Northern District of Oklahoma, and throughout my years of experience working on tribal justice issues, I have seen and heard from tribal leaders, law enforcement, social service providers, and victims about the challenges that exist on-the-ground in Native communities. There are 39 federally recognized tribes in Oklahoma, and 14 of those are in my District. We have large tribes like the Cherokee Nation and Muscogee (Creek) Nation and smaller tribes such as the Pawnee, Miami, or Delaware Tribes. We prosecute a diverse array of violent crimes and encounter too many victims who do not have the resources they so desperately need.

As a federal prosecutor, I have stood next to a hospital bed while a victim of domestic violence recounted the horrific details of how her lip was busted, her head concussed, her tooth knocked out, her arm broken, and her eye blackened. I listened to her cry as she explained that her boyfriend had flown into a fit of rage. I remember learning that the boyfriend had a history of domestic violence and that multiple women had sought protective orders against him. And I remember the disappointment when the victim notified us that she did not want to testify for fear of repercussions.  While we were still able to successfully prosecute the boyfriend in this case, far too often tribal, state, and federal prosecutions of domestic violence offenders are unsuccessful because of witness and evidentiary problems. In this and similar moments, it was crucial that I had with me federal and tribal law enforcement agents and a victim-witness specialist to ensure that we met the needs of the prosecution and the victim. Multi-jurisdictional and multi-disciplinary teams are important in these types of cases, just as they also are in sexual assault and child sexual assault prosecutions.

In 2008, I sat on the floor of a doublewide trailer in rural Oklahoma with a BIA investigator and Cherokee Nation Marshal as we tried to build rapport with a twelve-year-old girl who had been repeatedly raped by her father for a period of years. The victim had been so victimized that she communicated by adopting the characteristics of horses, that is, she whinnied, snorted, and stamped her feet. You see, the horses in the field behind her house were the only thing in her life that had not hurt her. They were her friends. After months of intense work with our prosecution team and counselors, that same little girl—and two of her friends who had also been raped by her father—bravely testified in front of a jury and in front of her father. He was found guilty and is now spending life in a federal penitentiary.

Members of the Committee, there are many more cases like these—domestic violence, sexual assaults, child abuse—that require resources to be successfully investigated and prosecuted, and to help give a voice to victims. These bills seek to provide some of those critical resources and I thank you.  

Thanks to the ongoing efforts of this Committee, federal agencies, and the Tribes, we are making progress in improving public safety in Native communities.  Since the passage of the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 we are making progress in ensuring that Tribes are able to access law enforcement databases, which is critical to meeting public safety needs.  We have expanded funding and training opportunities, established more productive protocols based on our government-to-government relationship with the Tribes, and have sought to be more clearly accountable for our efforts.       

In the Northern District of Oklahoma, I am blessed to have a great relationship with the fourteen federally recognized tribes. My Tribal Liaison, Shannon Bears Cozzoni, regularly travels to Indian Country where, together with other federal prosecutors, she provides a variety of training to tribal law enforcement officials to help them obtain Special Law Enforcement Commissions to enforce federal law in Indian Country. As a former tribal liaison myself, I can assure you this position is crucial for United States Attorney’s Offices and there are no more dedicated advocates for justice in Indian Country. The funding of training programs for tribal law enforcement through District-focused initiatives and the National Advocacy Center serves to improve the investigative skills of law enforcement, social service providers, and prosecutors working in Indian Country. Similarly, the creation of the Native American Issues Coordinator at the Executive Office for United States Attorneys and the formal establishment of the Office of Tribal Justice has given United States Attorneys with Indian Country in their Districts an ever-present voice in the halls of the Justice Department in DC even when we are not physically present. The Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 has been good for Indian Country and good for those of us working to ensure justice in Indian country.

Each bill proposes new methods and refined approaches to addressing major threats to public safety.  Savanna’s Act addresses a tragic set of cases: missing and murdered individuals, often women, in Indian country.  The Department of Justice supports the goals of this bill and the effort to take on this dark and tragic issue.  We have identified some technical issues in the course of our review. For example, Section 1 of the bill references the Automated Integrated Fingerprint Identification System, which has been replaced with the Next Generation Identification System. We welcome the opportunity to work with your staffs to assist in making some technical adjustments.

The SURVIVE Act addresses a long-time issue in Indian country: a lack of resources to support the level of victim services warranted by the levels of violent crime in Indian country.  The importance of providing effective services to victims of crime cannot be overstated.  From any angle—humanitarian, law enforcement, community relations—it is both right and necessary.  A number of the Department of Justice comments on an earlier version of this Act were incorporated into the current bill, which we recognize and appreciate.  We note that the Act includes a consultation requirement.  In fact, the Department, through the Office for Victims of Crime, has already begun making plans for formal consultations and listening sessions with tribes, with the first listening session having occurred in Milwaukee on October 18, 2017. Our review of this bill is ongoing, and welcome discussion with your staffs as we make progress towards a formal Administration response.  

The Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 was a significant and extremely positive piece of legislation.  As a result of that legislation, the Department of Justice is making significant progress on improving public safety in Indian country.  This Committee has received previous testimony from this Department on the many ways that the 2010 Tribal Law and Order Act altered and improved the way that we work in Indian country and with our federal partners and we agree with the Committee’s efforts to do more.  Our review of this bill is also ongoing, so while we do not yet have a formal position to offer we do applaud efforts to compel greater improvements in law enforcement, data sharing, and justice for Native American and Alaska Native children.  We are particularly heartened that you intend to extend the Bureau of Prisons pilot project and included support for our Tribal Access Program, which will help us expand that opportunity to more Tribes.      

In our review, we noted a recurring effort to improve data collection and information sharing.  The Department is unequivocally in favor of efforts to improve collection of and access to data whenever we can do so without harming victim confidentiality or jeopardizing an investigation.  We are working internally to find immediate opportunities for improvement.  And we will continue to work with our partner agencies, with Tribes, and with your staffs on data collection and information sharing issues.  

The Department is actively engaged in efforts to address the specific challenges described in the bills and is committed to working with Congress, other federal agencies, and Tribes to more effectively address them.  We seek, whenever possible, to expand Tribes’ opportunities for funding, training, and technical assistance.  Our partnerships with Tribes and with other agencies active in Indian country are an integral part of our daily work, which we continually review to ensure that our work is productive and focused on the needs of the Tribes.  

While we have further to go, we are far ahead of many nations in recognizing and protecting the rights of native peoples.  Around the world, indigenous peoples are marginalized, exploited, or threatened with death—denied basic human rights, women abused, indigenous cultures destroyed, languages lost.  With your continued leadership, the United States can lead by example to promote and protect the inherent rights of indigenous people.  Recently, missing and murdered indigenous women was a topic of discussion during a June meeting of the Attorneys General for the U.S., Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia.  In that meeting, Attorney General Sessions voiced support for the creation of a working group that would allow us to expand our partnerships in addressing this grievous issue.        

As indicated earlier, the Department of Justice fully supports the goals of these three bills.  The bills under discussion today are clearly intended to spur further progress, specifically in support of law enforcement, in providing effective services to victims of crime, and in shedding light on the tragic number of missing and murdered individuals in Indian country.  The Department’s review of the bills is ongoing; some offices have already reached out to discuss some of the technical aspects of the bills, and we welcome the opportunity to continue working with your staffs to refine language.  

We have made great progress, but we know we have a ways to go before we reach our shared goal of achieving lasting public safety in Indian country.  We appreciate the efforts by this Committee to ensure that legislation affecting Native communities puts Federal, State, and Tribal agencies in the best possible position to overcome barriers to public safety.  Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you today. Thank you also for the opportunity to share with you some perspective from the United States Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Oklahoma.  I am happy to answer any questions you may have.

R. Trent Shores, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma, announced two sentencings on Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) cases.  PSN is the Justice Department’s national initiative to reduce violent crime, particularly gun violence.  It is a results-oriented, collaborative approach to public safety that utilizes law enforcement, community partnerships, and strategic enforcement to focus on the most violent criminals in the most violent areas within each district.  “This office is committed to working with our law enforcement and community partners to prevent and deter violent offenders from possessing firearms in the Northern District of Oklahoma,” said United States Attorney Shores.

JERRY LEE NICHOLS

On October 10, 2017, Chief United States District Court Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Jerry Lee Nichols, 47, of Pryor, Oklahoma, to 52 months of imprisonment for the crime of Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition.  On April 15, 2017, Mayes County Sheriff’s Deputies were searching for Nichols after his girlfriend reported him for domestic violence.  Deputies tracked Nichols to a home in Locust Grove, Oklahoma, and found Nichols hiding underneath a pile of clothes inside a playpen.  Deputies found a loaded derringer underneath Nichols and a shotgun hidden underneath a couch in the room within which Nichols was hiding.  In addition to the term of imprisonment, Chief Judge Frizzell sentenced Nichols to 3 years of supervised release upon completion of imprisonment.  Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong prosecuted the case, which the Mayes County Sheriff’s Office investigated.

JESUS DELANO MENDOZA

On October 10, 2017, Chief United States District Court Judge Gregory K. Frizzell also sentenced Jesus Delano Mendoza, 34, of Phoenix, Arizona, to 114 months of imprisonment for Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition and Brandishing a Firearm During and in Relation to a Crime of Violence.  On April 22, 2017, Mendoza robbed a convenience store in North Tulsa.  Mendoza entered the store with a mask, brandished a firearm at the clerk, and took money and other items from the store.  Five days later, the United States Marshal Service’s Violent Crimes Task Force tracked Mendoza to a home in Tulsa and apprehended him.  During the arrest, Deputy Marshals found a loaded .22 caliber revolver in the area Mendoza was found.  In addition to the term of imprisonment, Chief Judge Frizzell sentenced Mendoza to 5 years of supervised release upon completion of imprisonment.  Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong prosecuted the case.  The Tulsa Police Department, the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, the United States Marshal Service’s Violent Crimes Task Force, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives jointly investigated the case.

Today, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced several Department of Justice actions to reduce the rising tide of violent crime in America. Foremost of those actions is the reinvigoration of “Project Safe Neighborhoods,” a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.

In announcing this recommitment to Project Safe Neighborhoods, the Attorney General issued a memo directing United States Attorneys to implement an enhanced violent crime reduction program that incorporates the lessons learned since Project Safe Neighborhoods launched in 2001.

Attorney General Sessions stated, “According to the FBI, the violent crime rate has risen by nearly seven percent over the past two years, and the homicide rate has risen by more than 20 percent.  We cannot be complacent or hope that this is just an anomaly:  we have a duty to take action.”

            “The Northern District of Oklahoma is not immune to the scourge of violent crime.  The United States Attorney’s Office stands ready to work side-by-side with our federal, state, tribal, and local partners to combat violent crime,” United States Attorney Shores said.  “We will target the most violent offenders, and we will prosecute them.  We will increase our engagement with community leaders to help keep youth on track and reduce recidivism.  Bottom line, we cannot afford to be complacent in the face of violence that threatens our communities.”

The Attorney General also announced the following Department of Justice initiatives to help reduce violent crime:

Additional Assistant United States Attorney Positions to Focus on Violent Crime – The Department is allocating 40 prosecutors to approximately 20 United States Attorney’s Offices to focus on violent crime reduction.

More Cops on the Streets (COPS Hiring Grants) – As part of our continuing commitment to crime prevention efforts, increased community policing, and the preservation of vital law enforcement jobs, the Department will be awarding approximately $98 million in FY 2017 COPS Hiring Grants to state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies.

Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force’s (OCDETF) National Gang Strategic Initiative –The National Gang Strategic Initiative promotes  creative enforcement strategies and best practices that will assist in developing investigations of violent criminal groups and gangs into enterprise-level OCDETF prosecutions.  Under this initiative, OCDETF provides “seed money” to locally-focused gang investigations, giving state, local, and tribal investigators and prosecutors the resources and tools needed to identify connections between lower-level gangs and national-level drug trafficking organizations.

Critical Training and Technical Assistance to State and Local Partners –The Department has a vast array of training and technical assistance resources available to state, local and tribal law enforcement, victims groups, and others.  To ensure that agencies in need of assistance are able to find the training and materials they need, OJP will make available a Violence Reduction Response Center to serve as a “hot line” to connect people to these resources. 

Crime Gun Intelligence Centers (CGIC) – The Department has provided grant funding to support a comprehensive approach to identifying the most violent offenders in a jurisdiction, using new technologies such as gunshot detection systems combined with gun crime intelligence from NIBIN, eTrace, and investigative efforts.  These FY 2017 grants were awarded to Phoenix, Arizona, and Kansas City, Missouri. 

Expand ATF’s NIBIN Urgent Trace Program – The Department will expand ATF’s NIBIN Urgent Trace Program nationwide by the end of the year.  Through this program, any firearm submitted for tracing that is associated with a NIBIN “hit” (which means it can be linked to a shooting incident) will be designated an “urgent” trace and the requestor will get information back about the firearm’s first retail purchaser within 24 hours, instead of 5 to 6 business days.

Loretta F. Radford, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma announced today that Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell, of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma, sentenced Raymond Arthur Ortega, 33, of Montebello, California, to 10 years of imprisonment for Possession of Methamphetamine With Intent to Distribute and five years of supervised release following his release from prison.

On September 26, 2016, Ortega was stopped by Oklahoma Highway Patrol (OHP) troopers for speeding. During the stop, OHP troopers learned Ortega was a fugitive in California. OHP troopers searched Ortega’s vehicle, following an alert from a drug detecting K-9, and found approximately three pounds of methamphetamine hidden in a side door panel.

This case was investigated by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, the Tulsa Police Department’s Special Investigations Division, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong.

A jury found Juan Garcia, also known as "Shorty," guilty of Drug Conspiracy, announced Loretta F. Radford, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. The jury determined that Garcia conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and elsewhere. The jury also found the scope of the conspiracy involved at least 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.

On January 26, 2017, Tulsa Department Police (TPD) officers pulled over a Chevrolet truck in which Garcia was a passenger. The truck had been following a Chevrolet Cruze from Oklahoma City, which was transporting three pounds, or approximately 1400 grams, of methamphetamine. TPD officers pulled the Cruze over and found the methamphetamine. TPD officers seized a phone and $19,915 from Garcia's person. TPD officers also discovered three other cellphones in the Chevrolet truck.

TPD officers and agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) arrested and interviewed co-conspirators, and extracted data from all of the cellphones seized in this case. From these interviews and data extractions, law enforcement learned that Garcia was the supplier of the three pounds of methamphetamine. Law enforcement also learned that Garcia had been supplying methamphetamine to the other co-conspirators at least as far back as November 2016.

Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell, of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma, presided over the trial and will sentence Garcia on December 4, 2017. Garcia faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years imprisonment and a maximum of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and at least 5 years supervised release following his release from imprisonment. Garcia also faces deportation to Mexico.

This case was investigated by the Tulsa Police Department's Special Investigations Division, the DEA, Oklahoma Highway Patrol, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong.

Today, Acting United States Attorney Loretta F. Radford announced that a one-count Federal Complaint was filed against Kody Bill Clark, a/k/a “Seminole,” from Mulhall, Oklahoma, age 34, Daniel Wayne Strunk, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, age 43, and Stephanie Renee Tyson, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, age 30, charging Conspiracy to Possess with the Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine.

According to documents filed in the case, Strunk and Tyson travelled to Clark’s residence in Mulhall, Oklahoma, on July 11, 2017, to obtain approximately one-quarter pound of methamphetamine from Clark.

On their return to Tulsa, Strunk and Tyson were stopped by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol near Sand Springs, Oklahoma. A narcotics detecting K-9 officer was deployed and gave a positive alert that indicated the presence of illegal narcotics, and a search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of 175.9 grams of methamphetamine.

The arrest of Clark, Strunk, and Tyson is part of an ongoing criminal investigation of the Indian Brotherhood Gang, and its criminal activities, in the Northern District of Oklahoma, Western District of Oklahoma, and Eastern District of Oklahoma.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) are leading this investigation with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the United States Marshal’s Service (USMS), and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, and Task Force Officers assigned to the DEA-HIDTA. Assistant United States Attorney Robert T. Raley will prosecute the case.

Chief United States District Court Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Ronald Eugene Robinson, 62, of Tulsa, to 57 months of imprisonment for Accessing with Intent to View Child Pornography, announced Loretta F. Radford, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Chief Judge Frizzell also sentenced Robinson to 10 years of supervised release following his release from prison.

On November 10, 2015, agents with the United States Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Phoenix, Arizona, conducted an undercover operation in an internet chatroom. While in the chatroom, HSI agents observed Robinson, a minister in Turley, Oklahoma, and other individuals watching child pornography that was being streamed. Robinson used a computer to access the chatroom. Some of the children in the videos were under the age of 12.

HSI agents observed Robinson making comments in the chatroom about raping a child and responding to a comment about killing a child after sexual abuse. HSI agents also went through Robinson’s chat logs and discovered that he had engaged in conversations with other individuals about raping, torturing, and abusing of children.

This case was investigated by HSI, the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tulsa Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong.

Dr. George Cohlmia, a physician with offices in Tulsa and Tahlequah, entered into a settlement agreement to pay $120,000 to resolve civil allegations that he violated the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 1970, announced Acting United States Attorney Loretta F. Radford of the Northern District of Oklahoma. The Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 1970 regulates the manufacture and distribution of controlled substances.

According to the settlement agreement, between April 2013 and June 2015, it was alleged that Dr. Cohlmia dispensed controlled substances outside of his DEA registered location and permitted employees to purchase and dispense controlled substances to themselves, other employees, and Dr. Cohlmia. It was further alleged that Dr. Cohlmia failed to keep an inventory and other required records concerning the ordering, receipt and dispensing of controlled substances.

This case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Marianne Hardcastle. The claims asserted by the government are allegations only, and there has not been any determination of liability.

If you are aware of any illegal or unusual sales and/or distribution of prescription drugs, please contact the Drug Enforcement Administration at 1-877-792-2873.

Today, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma, Loretta F. Radford, filed a four-count Federal Complaint against Benjamin Don Roden, a 28-year-old resident of Tulsa, Oklahoma, accused of using an explosive device to cause destruction of the Bixby Air Force Recruitment Office. The Federal Complaint charges Roden with Malicious Damage to Federal Property By Use of Explosive, Destruction of Federal Property, Use of Explosive to Commit Federal Felony, and Destruction of Federal Property.

The supporting affidavit to the Complaint generally alleges that Roden violated Federal laws associated with the destruction of Federal property and Federal laws prohibiting the manufacturing, possession, and use of explosives. The Complaint specifically alleges that on July 10, 2017, at approximately 10:28 p.m., an explosive device detonated outside of the Air Force Recruiting Station located at 10425 South 82nd East Avenue, Suite 103, Bixby, Oklahoma. Besides breaking windows, the resulting explosion from the detonation of the explosive device caused significant structural damage to the office front of the recruiting station. Roden was identified and later arrested, based upon leads obtained from Roden’s Facebook page and a witness who identified Roden’s motorcycle speeding away simultaneously with the sound of an explosion in the area; the execution of a Federal search warrant against Roden’s residence; and a consensual search of a residence belonging to Roden’s parents. The explosive, identified by law enforcement specialists as an improvised explosive device, is commonly referred to as a “pipe bomb”.

“The exacting and immediate response by the Federal Bureau of Investigation has led to the successful arrest and detention of an individual who would seek to do harm to the citizens of the Northern District by designing and creating a pipe bomb to target a Federal military recruitment facility. I view this conduct as not only a threat to the safety of the citizens of this district, but as an assault upon all of the dedicated men and women in this country who willingly support our military efforts,” Acting U.S. Attorney, Loretta F. Radford said. “I intend to seek a formal grand jury indictment.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is leading the investigation, assisted by Special Agents with the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Unit, the Tulsa Police Department Bomb Squad and the Bixby Police Department. Assistant United States Attorneys Allen J. Litchfield and R. Trent Shores will prosecute the case.

Cynthia Renee Scarsdale, 55, of Tulsa, pled guilty to two counts of Wire Fraud, announced Loretta F. Radford, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. United States District Court James H. Payne will sentence Scarsdale on September 27, 2017.

Scarsdale was the office manager at A&R Mechanical, Inc. in Tulsa. Beginning as early as January 2005 and continuing until about March 2013, Scarsdale forged checks and fraudulently wired money from A&R’s corporate accounts into her own personal accounts. In order to disguise her schemes, she entered false data into A&R’s accounting records. Scarsdale embezzled at least $333,133 from her employers at A&R Mechanical, Inc.

She faces a maximum sentence of twenty years of imprisonment, a $666,266 fine, and three years of supervised release following a sentence of imprisonment. This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Joseph F. Wilson and Neal C. Hong.

Jeffrey Richard Goss, 56, of Tulsa, pled guilty to Accessing with Intent to View Child Pornography, announced Loretta F. Radford, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. United States District Court Judge Claire V. Eagan will sentence Goss on September 28, 2017.

According to documents filed in the case, on November 12, 2015, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents conducted an undercover operation in an internet chatroom. While in the chatroom, HSI agents observed Goss and other individuals watching child pornography that was being streamed. Some of the children in the videos were under the age of 12.

Goss, an elementary school principal, admitted he accessed the internet chatroom on November 12, 2015, and viewed child pornography. Goss faces a maximum sentence of twenty years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release up to life following a sentence of imprisonment.

This case was investigated by HSI, the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tulsa Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong.

A Tulsa federal court sentenced Clint Tirone Barger of Tulsa, Oklahoma, to serve 21 years plus 10 months in federal prison for possession and distribution of child pornography followed by 8 years of supervised release, announced Acting United States Attorney Loretta Radford for the Northern District of Oklahoma.

Barger plead guilty to a two-count Information on March 30, 2017.

According to court documents, from November 2016 to February 2, 2017, Barger knowingly possessed and distributed images of children under the age of 14 engaging in sexually explicit conduct. Barger used social media and internet file sharing programs to entice minors to send him images of the sexually explicit conduct. Barger then distributed the images to others.

Department of Homeland Security Investigations and the Tulsa Police Department investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorneys Clinton J. Johnson and Shannon Cozzoni prosecuted the case.

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

Ronald Eugene Robinson, 62, of Tulsa, pled guilty to Accessing with Intent to View Child Pornography, announced Loretta F. Radford, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Chief United States District Court Judge Gregory K. Frizzell will sentence Robinson on August 10, 2017.

On November 10, 2015, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents in Phoenix, Arizona conducted an undercover operation in an internet chatroom. While in the chatroom, HSI agents observed Robinson and other individuals watching child pornography that was being streamed. Some of the children in the videos were under the age of 12.

On March 30, 2017, HSI agents served a warrant and searched Robinson’s home. Robinson admitted he accessed the internet chatroom and viewed child pornography. Robinson faces a maximum sentence of twenty years of imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release up to life following a sentence of imprisonment.

This case was investigated by HSI, the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tulsa Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong.

TULSA, OKLAHOMA—A 21-year-old Tulsa man pleaded guilty in federal court today to charges stemming from a sex trafficking operation conducted by Tulsa Police Department’s Vice Unit, United States Attorney Danny C. Williams, Sr. announced.

Joshua Harring (a/k/a “Maniack”) pleaded guilty before United States District Court Judge John E. Dowdell to Child Sex Trafficking and Conspiracy to Engage in Child Sex Trafficking. A federal grand jury had previously returned a six-count Second Superseding Indictment in October 2016, charging Harring with conspiracy, child sex trafficking violations, obstruction of justice, and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence and drug trafficking crimes. Federal prosecutors claimed Harring was the head of a child sex trafficking venture that victimized at least three Tulsa teenagers. Prosecutors noted that Harring was the sixth defendant to admit his guilt in this case and related cases. Morgan Palmer, Tajuan Alexander, Steven Gonzalez, Latisha Perkins, and Dawaune Allen all previously admitted their guilt in Federal court for the roles they played in related sex trafficking violations. Several of the co-conspirators had ties to the 52 Red Mob Gang set, a Tulsa street gang.

Beginning in late December 2015, Harring conspired with his girlfriend, Morgan Palmer, and others to recruit girls under the age of 18 to perform commercial sex acts at various Tulsa motels. On January 4, 2016, Tulsa Police Department Vice Unit officers encountered a 16-year-old victim during an undercover operation in which TPD responded to an online advertisement on Backpage.com. Shortly thereafter, officers identified and arrested Harring for his role in the sex trafficking operation.

Despite Harring’s arrest, Vice Unit officers determined from their investigation that the sex trafficking conspiracy was still ongoing and conducted a second undercover operation targeting a related Backpage ad. On January 19, 2016, TPD Vice Unit officers arrested Palmer, who had continued the child sex trafficking operation from her apartment at The Enclave near Brookside in midtown Tulsa. In total, officers identified three minors who had been victimized by Harring’s child sex trafficking venture. A fourth minor victim was identified in a related child sex trafficking operation involving Latisha Perkins and Dawaune Allen.

Harring’s plea agreement sets forth an agreed upon sentence of twenty-two years in Federal prison, where parole has been abolished. His sentencing hearing is set for May 11, 2017 at 10:00 a.m.

The Tulsa Police Department investigated this case with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys R. Trent Shores and Andrew J. Hofland prosecuted this matter on behalf of the United States.

“Human traffickers prey on vulnerable teenagers in our community and exploit them for their personal profit by selling them in the commercial sex trade. I commend the Tulsa Police Department’s Vice Unit for their excellent work in investigating this matter,” stated United States Attorney Williams.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc. For more information about Internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

TULSA, Okla.— Thomas Heath Davis, 37, pled guilty to possession of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) with intent to distribute, announced Danny C. Williams Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. Chief United States District Court Judge Gregory K. Frizzell will sentence Davis on May 1, 2017.

On September 14, 2016, Tulsa Police Department’s (TPD) Special Investigations Division executed a search warrant on the Davis residence. TPD officers found hundreds of dosage units of LSD in the bedroom. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) website, “LSD is a potent hallucinogen that has a high potential for abuse, but currently has no accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.”

TPD officers also found approximately $21,000, numerous firearms, three working digital scales, large quantities of plastic baggies, a vacuum sealer, and a money counter. Davis attempted to flee the jurisdiction and failed to appear in court on January 5, 2017. He was quickly apprehended the next day by TPD officers and deputies with the United States Marshals Service (USMS).

Davis faces a maximum sentence of twenty years of imprisonment, a $1,000,000 fine, and at least three years of supervised release following a sentence of imprisonment.

This case was investigated by the Tulsa Police Department’s Special Investigations Division, DEA, USMS, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong

TULSA, OKLAHOMA – U.S. Attorney Danny C. Williams, Sr., announced today that John Ray James of Dewey, pleaded guilty before United States District Judge Claire V. Egan to his role in a conspiracy related to the purchase and sale of $8.2 million of synthetic cannabinoids, also known as K2, at three retail smoke shops in Tulsa, Owasso and Claremore.

At his change of plea hearing, James admitted that, from October 2011 to October 2014, he purchased for resale products falsely labeled as “potpourri,” “aromatherapy,” and “not for human consumption” which he knew contained synthetic drugs that customers purchased for human consumption.

“Synthetic drugs are a serious health threat that is especially dangerous to the young people of our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Williams. “These synthetic drugs are sold with harmless sounding names to impressionable youth who are typically unaware of the harmful chemicals they are ingesting. The chemicals in these drugs imported from China and Hong Kong are not approved for human consumption and have led to psychotic episodes, seizures and even death.”

IRS-CI Assistant Special Agent in Charge for the Dallas Field Office, Kelly Carpenter, stated, “Synthetic drugs represent a serious public health problem and are generally marketed toward teens and young adults. The consumption of these illegal substances endangers young people around the country and can result in serious health issues, including death. IRS-CI is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to protect the public and to dismantle the drug organizations that promote the use of these toxic chemicals for their own financial gain.”

DEA Assistant Special Agent in Charge Richard Salter stated, “The successful conclusion of this investigation represents what can be achieved when law enforcement, the medical community, educators and concerned parents come together for the welfare of our children. Synthetic cannabinoids are unpredictably dangerous and can be deadly.”

James will face a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. In addition, James agreed to the forfeiture of seized funds in the amount $1.7 million.

The investigation is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) and High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) programs led by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Catherine J. Depew.

TULSA, Okla.— Sara Nicole Hogsett, 26, plead guilty to Tampering with Consumer Products, announced Danny C. Williams Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma. United States District Court Judge James H. Payne will sentence Hogsett on April 26, 2017.

From April 2016 to May 2016, Hogsett, a paramedic, took pain medication: fentanyl, morphine and diazepam, from her assigned ambulances by removing the liquid drugs from their vials. Hogsett used the drugs on herself and replaced the removed liquid with saline solution. Agents from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) confronted Hogsett about the vials and she admitted to the agents that she tampered with them.

"FDA oversees the U.S. supply of medicines to ensure that they are safe and effective, and those who knowingly tamper with medicines for patients put their health at risk," said Spencer E. Morrison, Special Agent in Charge, FDA Office of Criminal Investigations' Kansas City Field Office. "Our office will continue to pursue and bring to justice those who violate laws designed to protect the public health."

This case was investigated by the FDA. Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong prosecuted the case.

TULSA, OKLAHOMA— Jeffrey A. Stevens, 60, of East Lyme, Connecticut entered a guilty plea to five counts of Interstate Communications with the Intent to Injure.

Danny C. Williams, Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District said, “Jeffrey Stevens used the internet to intentionally disseminate threats to kill in order to impact the professional responsibilities and duties of those involved in the prosecution of the Terrance Crutcher case. This type of criminal conduct will not be tolerated.”

Stevens prosecution resulted from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigations. The investigation revealed that between September 19, 2016 and September 22, 2016 in the wake of the shooting of Terence Crutcher, Stevens threatened, via the internet, to injure or kill local law enforcement, a prosecutor, a judge, and their immediate families. Steven’s intended that the recipients of the threats would interpret the threats as true threats impacting the hiring practices with the Tulsa Police Department and decision making process within the Tulsa County justice system. Stevens entered a guilty plea pursuant to a plea agreement with the United States.

Stevens faces a maximum sentence of five-years imprisonment and a fine of not more than $250,000.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys R. Trent Shores and Allen Litchfield.

TULSA, Okla.— TULSA, Okla.—Chief United States District Court Judge Gregory K. Frizzell sentenced Jesse Bud Leaverton, 58, to life imprisonment under the three-strikes sentencing statute for robbing three banks in the Tulsa metro area, announced Danny C. Williams Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma.

Leaverton went on a bank robbery spree that begun on June 18, 2016, with the robbery of the Arvest Bank at 218 South Memorial Drive in Tulsa. On June 23, 2016, Leaverton robbed Bank of America at 5950 East Admiral in Tulsa and on June 24, 2016, Leaverton robbed Security State Bank in Fairfax, Oklahoma. Leaverton threatened the bank tellers with the use of a firearm and, in addition, threatened the Security State Bank teller with death.

Leaverton was located by the United States Marshals Violent Crimes Task Force in Missouri on June 30, 2016. On September 20, 2016, a jury found Leaverton guilty of all three bank robberies. Leaverton has an extensive criminal history. He has been convicted of numerous felonies, including: burglary, manslaughter, and armed bank robbery. Before he committed the instant robberies, Leaverton was convicted of robbing a bank in Missouri and received a sentence of 271 months. He was on federal supervised release when he committed the robberies in the Tulsa metro area.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Tulsa Police Department, the Osage County Sherriff’s Office, the Talala Police Department, and the United States Marshals Violent Crimes Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong prosecuted the case.

United States Attorney Danny C. Williams, Sr. announced today that a Tulsa, Oklahoma, physician, Dr. Anoop Sangha, entered into a settlement agreement to pay $50,000 to resolve civil allegations that he violated the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 1970, which regulates the manufacture and distribution of controlled substances.

According to the settlement agreement, the violations of the Act occurred between September 4, 2011 and February 16, 2012.  The settlement resolves an action filed by the United States in Federal District Court on September 2, 2016, wherein Dr. Sangha was accused of forging numerous prescriptions for his personal use. 

This case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Marianne Hardcastle following an investigation by the Drug Diversion Unit of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration.  If you are aware of any illegal prescription drug sales and distribution, contact the Drug Enforcement Administration at 1-877-792-2873.

The claims asserted by the government are allegations only, and there has not been any determination of liability.

Vysean Leandre Embry, 33, of Tulsa, Oklahoma was sentenced for his participation in drug trafficking activities conducted from the Tonight Inn and Suites located at 8333 East Admiral, Tulsa, Oklahoma and other locations throughout Tulsa.   

Danny C. Williams, Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District said, “Embry’s criminal conduct was especially egregious because Embry, a member of the Hoover Crips street gang, and others monopolized the motel and used it as a drug haven for drug trafficking purposes.” 

Embry’s prosecution resulted from an eight-month long joint investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Tulsa Police Department.  The investigation culminated in a search warrant executed at the Tonight Inn and Suites on July 29, 2015.  The investigation resulted in the prosecution of twelve other individuals who were alleged to have been involved in the illegal distribution of crack cocaine from the Tonight Inn and Suites. 

“The joint investigation was part of an effort to target violent gang members through a sustained, proactive, and coordinated investigation using federal resources to identify and prosecute higher ranking gang members and to obtain lengthy prison sentences”, said Williams.  

Embry entered a guilty plea pursuant to a plea agreement with the United States.  Embry entered a guilty plea to drug conspiracy.  Judge Gregory Frizzell, Chief Judge for the Northern District of Oklahoma, sentenced Embry to 180 months in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons, followed by 10 years of supervised release, and $100 special assessment.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joel-lyn A. McCormick.

U.S. Attorney Danny C. Williams, Sr., announced today that Christopher Ivor Mansfield, 38 of Tulsa, a disbarred Tulsa County probate attorney, pleaded guilty before Chief United States District Judge Gregory K. Frizzell to bank fraud and money laundering charges.  Mansfield embezzled $587,000 from probate estate accounts according to an information filed on September 29, 2016. 

At his change of plea hearing, Mansfield admitted that, from August 2012 to October 2015, he used fraudulent pretense to obtain money entrusted to the Bank of Oklahoma by diverting assets from probate estate accounts using: unauthorized checks made payable to himself; unauthorized transfers of funds from the probate estates; and the unauthorized depositing of checks into his business and personal accounts. Mansfield admitted he used the stolen money on personal expenses, mainly American Express credit card purchases and to support his drug habit

“Mr. Mansfield chose to violate and abuse his position of trust as a probate attorney.  As a result, he embezzled $587,030 from eleven probate estates or guardianships,” said U.S. Attorney Williams.

At the time of the alleged crimes, Mansfield was a licensed attorney in the State of Oklahoma who was court-appointed in probate cases.  He served as a personal representative in probate cases and was responsible for overseeing the financial affairs of multiple probate estates.

Mansfield will face a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine for the bank fraud charges and a maximum penalty for 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the unlawful monetary transaction charge.  In addition, the Court could enter a restitution order and a criminal forfeiture money judgment, each in the amount of $587,030.

The case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Charles McLoughlin and Catherine Depew.

United States Attorney Danny C. Williams, Sr. announced today that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Charles M. McLoughlin will lead the efforts of his Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 8, 2016, general elections.  AUSA McLoughlin has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Northern District of Oklahoma, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights abuses in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

          United States Attorney Williams said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud.  The Department of Justice will act promptly and aggressively to protect the integrity of the election process.”

          The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring election fraud and discrimination at the polls, and combating these violations whenever and wherever they occur.  The Department’s long-standing Election Day Program furthers these goals, and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the integrity of the election process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible election fraud and voting rights violations while the polls are open on election day.

          Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input.  It also contains special protections for the rights of voters and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them.  For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law.  Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice.

          The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy.  We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice.  In order to respond to complaints of election fraud or voting rights abuses on November 8, 2016, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, United States Attorney Williams stated that AUSA/DEO McLoughlin will be on duty in this District while the polls are open.  He can be reached by the public at the following telephone number: (918) 382-2700.

          In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day.  The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at (918) 664-3300.

          Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division’s Voting Section in Washington, DC by phone at 1-800-253-3931 or (202) 307-2767, by fax at (202) 307-3961, by email to voting.section@usdoj.gov or by complaint form at http://www.justice.gov/crt/complaint/votintake/index.php.

          United States Attorney Williams said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the cooperation of the American electorate.  It is imperative that those who have specific information about discrimination or election fraud make that information available immediately to my Office, the FBI, or the Civil Rights Division.”

TULSA, Okla.— The results of the October 2016 Federal Grand Jury were announced today by Danny C. Williams Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma.

The following individuals have been charged with violations of United States law in indictments returned by the Grand Jury. The return of an indictment is a method of informing a defendant of alleged federal crimes which must be proven in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt to overcome a defendant’s presumption of innocence.

Jaime Centeno-Martinez. Reentry of Removed Alien. Centeno-Martinez, 39, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in December 2006 from Douglas, Arizona. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.

Thomas Heath Davis. Possession of LSD with Intent to Distribute, Using a Drug-Involved Premise, and Possession of Firearms in Furtherance of Drug Trafficking Crimes. Davis, 36, of Tulsa, is charged with possession with intent to distribute 10 grams or more of LSD and for maintaining a place for the purpose of distributing LSD, ecstasy, marijuana, and psychedelic mushrooms. In addition, he is charged with possession of a .223 caliber semi-automatic rifle, an IMI Uzi 9mm semi-automatic rifle, and two .45 caliber semi-automatic pistols in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes. If convicted, Davis faces the statutory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $10,000,000 fine for possession of LSD with intent to distribute; a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $500,000 fine for using a drug-involved premise; and a statutory minimum penalty of five years up to life in prison and a $250,000 fine for possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes. The Drug Enforcement Administration is the investigating agency.

Marco Alberto Lara. Possession of an Unregistered Firearm and Alien Unlawfully in the United States in Possession of Firearms. Lara, 34, is charged with possession of a 20 gauge weapon made from a shotgun not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. In addition, he is charged with being in the United States unlawfully and in possession of a 20 gauge weapon made from a shotgun and a .308 caliber semi-automatic rifle. If convicted, Lara faces a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine for possession of an unregistered firearm and a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for being unlawfully in the United States in possession of firearms. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is the investigating agency.    

Chantz Brandon Lucas. Drug Conspiracy, Attempted Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine, and Use of a Communication Facility in Committing, Causing, and Facilitating the Commission of a Drug Trafficking Felony. Lucas, 41, of Owasso, is charged with conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, and attempting to possess with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. In addition, he faces four counts of using a telephone in committing, causing and facilitating the commission of a drug trafficking felony. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is the investigating agency.

Irma Marquez-Negrete. Reentry of Removed Alien. Marquez-Negrete, 23, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in November 2015 from El Paso, Texas. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.

Daniel Mejia. Reentry of Removed Alien; Alien Unlawfully in the United States in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition; and Felon in Possession of a Firearm and Ammunition. Mejia, 28, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in September 2007 from Calexico, California. In addition, he is charged with possession of a 9mm x 19 caliber pistol and ammunition and for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition after prior felony convictions. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for unlawful reentry into the United States; and a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the remaining charges. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is the investigating agency.    

Gustavo Armando Monreal-Rodriguez. Reentry of Removed Alien. Monreal-Rodriguez, 23, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in June 2015 from Del Rio, Texas. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.

Jennifer Kathryn Steffen and Cory Blake Ackley. Theft of Mail, Possession of Stolen Mail, and Possession of Fifteen or More Unauthorized Access Devices. Steffen, 32, and Ackley, 26, are each charged with three counts of stealing mail from apartment complex cluster mail boxes; possession of stolen mail to include over 100 credit cards, credit card applications and other documents; and possession of 18 unauthorized access devices ie. credit and debit cards. If convicted, Steffen and Ackley each face the statutory maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the theft of mail and possession of stolen mail charges; and a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for possession of unauthorized access devices. The United States Postal Inspector is the investigating agency.

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TULSA, Okla.—Ryan Patrick Wise, of Greensboro, North Carolina, and Jasmine Lynch, of Jacksonville, Florida, were sentenced to 210 months and 120 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in sex trafficking a 14-year-old girl, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma. United States District Court Judge John E. Dowdell presided over both cases.

Wise and Lynch were each charged by a second superseding indictment in May 2016. Both defendants pleaded guilty in June 2016.

According to court documents, in November 2015, Wise and Lynch recruited, enticed, provided, and advertised a 14-year-old girl from Tulsa to engage in commercial sex acts with adult men. They rented hotel and motel rooms in Tulsa to provide the underage girl for prostitution purposes and advertised the girl for sex on Backpage.com.

The case was investigated by the Tulsa Police Department; and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Trent Shores.

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

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TULSA, Okla.—A Colorado couple has paid $30,000 to resolve allegations that they trespassed and either cut down or had another person cut down trees on property owned by the United States government, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma.

Charles and Meegon Reilly own property in Mannford, Okla., that was occupied by Johnny Bozarth. Their property is adjacent to property owned by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, as part of the Keystone Lake Project.

According to the settlement agreement, the United States alleged that, on or before April 1, 2015, the Reilly’s and/or Bozarth trespassed and either cut down or had another person cut down approximately 230 trees in violation of Federal and Oklahoma laws.

The case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Marianne Hardcastle.

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TULSA, Okla.—A Tulsa County probate attorney made his initial appearance today in U.S. District Court on charges stemming from his embezzling $587,000 from probate estate accounts he controlled. United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma and Special Agent in Charge R. Damon Rowe of the IRS-CI’s Dallas Office announced the criminal charges at a news conference held this morning.

Christopher Ivor Mansfield, 38, was charged with one count each of bank fraud and money laundering before United States District Magistrate Judge Paul Cleary.

“Mr. Mansfield chose to violate and abuse his position of trust as a probate attorney. As a result, he embezzled $587,030 from eleven probate estates or guardianships,” said U.S. Attorney Williams.

At the time of the alleged crimes, Mansfield was a licensed attorney in the State of Oklahoma who was court-appointed in probate cases. He served as a personal representative in probate cases and was responsible for overseeing the financial affairs of multiple probate estates.

According to court documents, it is alleged that, from August 2012 to October 2015, Mansfield knowingly executed and attempted to execute a scheme to obtain money or property entrusted to the Bank of Oklahoma by means of fraudulent pretenses. It is further alleged that Mansfield fraudulently diverted estate assets from various estate accounts using unauthorized checks made payable to himself; unauthorized transfers of funds from the estates; and the unauthorized depositing of checks into his business and personal accounts.

Mansfield used the stolen money on personal expenses, mainly American Express credit card purchases and to support his drug habit.

At the time of sentencing, Mansfield will face a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine for the bank fraud charge and a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the unlawful monetary transaction charge. In addition, he will face a restitution order and a criminal forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $587,030.

The case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Charles McLoughlin and Catherine Depew.

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TULSA, Okla.—A jury in the United States District Court found Jesse Bud Leaverton, 58, guilty of three counts of Bank Robbery, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. for the Northern District of Oklahoma. The trial was presided over by United States District Court Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell and he will sentence Leaverton on December 20, 2016.

According to the evidence at trial, Leaverton went on a bank robbery spree that begun on June 18, 2016, with the robbery of the Arvest Bank at 218 South Memorial Drive in Tulsa when Leaverton handed a teller a threatening note demanding money and stating that he had a gun and would use it if necessary. 

On June 23, 2016, Leaverton robbed Bank of America at 5950 East Admiral in Tulsa with another threatening note to a teller that demanded money and stated that he had a gun and would be “watching her.” 

The next day, June 24, 2016, Leaverton robbed Security State Bank in Fairfax, Oklahoma, by again handing a teller a threatening note that stated that he had a gun and a knife and would kill her.  After taking the money, Leaverton reminded the teller that he would kill her.   

Leaverton was located by the United States Marshals Violent Crimes Task Force in Missouri on June 30, 2016. The Federal Bureau of Investigation recovered cash receipts, camping equipment, and a new car title from Leaverton’s car. Additionally, FBI agents also found clothing and eyeglasses similar to the ones Leaverton wore during the bank robberies.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Tulsa Police Department, the Osage County Sherriff’s Office, the Talala Police Department, and the United States Marshals Violent Crimes Task Force.  Assistant United States Attorney Neal C. Hong prosecuted the case.

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TULSA, Okla.—A Union Public Schools teacher was sentenced today to serve 13 years in federal prison for receiving child pornography followed by 20 years of supervised release, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma.

James Russell Wilson, 32, of Tulsa, was indicted by a grand jury in April 2016, and pleaded guilty on June 14, 2016.

According to court documents, from October 2014 to about December 2014, Wilson found the public profile of a 12 year-old girl on Instagram and began sending messages to her username on Kik, an online-messaging program. In the course of “chatting” with the child over several months, Wilson requested increasingly more revealing and ultimately sexual photos of her and enticed the child to expose herself and perform sexual acts on herself. Wilson sent her pictures in which he exposed himself and engaged in masturbation. Wilson convinced the 12 year-old girl to send, and Wilson received, photos of her engaging in sexually explicit conduct, including the lascivious exhibition of her genitalia through her underwear or other clothing, and both simulated and actual masturbation.

United States Immigration Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were the investigating agencies. Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew J. Hofland and Allen J. Litchfield prosecuted the case.

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

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TULSA, OKLA.— Nelson Wade Cagle, 32, of Owasso, was sentenced today to serve 36 months in federal prison for filing a false income tax return in 2013, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma. In addition to the prison incarceration, United States District Court Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell ordered Cagle to pay restitution in the approximate amount of $2 million to CEI Petroleum, LLC, owned by ORCA/CEI Petroleum, and approximately $600,000 to the Internal Revenue Service.

Cagle was charged by Information in April 2016, and pleaded guilty in June 2016.

According to court documents, Cagle admitted that he failed to report the monies and funds that he fraudulently diverted from ORCA/CEI Petroleum, a local petroleum/energy corporation, as income on his 2013 federal tax return. His embezzlement and failure to report it on his income tax return also resulted in his owing the Internal Revenue Service more than $597,000.

The case was a joint investigation by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Trent Shores prosecuted the case.

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TULSA, Okla.— The results of the September 2016 Federal Grand Jury were announced today by Danny C. Williams Sr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma.

The following individuals have been charged with violations of United States law in indictments returned by the Grand Jury. The return of an indictment is a method of informing a defendant of alleged federal crimes which must be proven in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt to overcome a defendant’s presumption of innocence.

Brandon Lee Amend and Cory Dean Blanchard. Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud, Bank Fraud, Possession of Device Making Equipment, Theft of Receipt of Stolen Mail Matter, and Keys or Locks Stolen or Reproduced. Amend, 30, and Blanchard, 32, both of Wichita, Kansas, are each charged with, six counts of bank fraud, one count each of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, possession of device-making equipment, mail theft, and possessing and counterfeiting mail keys. Amend and Blanchard are accused of possessing equipment to make counterfeit checks, driver’s licenses and United States Postal Service collection box keys. The defendants are accused of stealing checks from collection boxes then making and using false identification documents to fraudulently obtain money from a local bank. The defendants fraudulently obtained over $10,000. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. The United States Postal Inspection Service is the investigating agency.

Octavio Gaytan-Veles. Reentry of Removed Alien. Gaytan-Veles, 39, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in June 2013 from Brownsville, Texas. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.      

Rigoberto Gomez-Mendez. Reentry of Removed Alien. Gomez-Mendez, 29, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in November 2012 from Laredo, Texas. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.

Ethan Joseph Hernandez. Aiming a Laser Pointer at an Aircraft. Hernandez, 24, of Sapulpa, is charged with aiming the beam of a laser pointer at a Tulsa Police Department helicopter. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The Department of Transportation is the investigating agency. 

Reuben Joe Mercado. False Statements or Representations and Concealing a Person From Arrest. Mercado, 37, of Tulsa, is charged with making false statements to a Deputy United States Marshal regarding the whereabouts of a fugitive and for the offense of harboring and concealing the fugitive from arrest. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for both offenses. The United States Marshals Service is the investigating agency.              

Daniel Vasquez-Garcia. Reentry of Removed Alien. Vasquez-Garcia, 50, is charged with having returned to the United States unlawfully after being deported in July 2009 from Laredo, Texas. If convicted, the statutory maximum penalty is 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement is the investigating agency.                  

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TULSA, Okla.—A Jay, Oklahoma, physician, Dr. Darrell R. Mease, entered into a settlement agreement to pay $100,000 to resolve civil allegations that he violated the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 1970, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma. The Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention Act of 1970, regulates the manufacture and distribution of controlled substances.

According to the settlement agreement, from September 2010 to September 2015, Dr. Mease would pre-sign prescription pads and allowed his employees and his wife to prescribe phentermine and other controlled substances for patients without conducting a medical examination. Furthermore, Dr. Mease prescribed controlled substances for his wife who was not his patient.

If you are aware of any illegal prescription drug sales and distribution, contact the Drug Enforcement Administration at 1-877-792-2873.

This case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Marianne Hardcastle. The claims asserted by the government are allegations only, and there has not been any determination of liability.

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TULSA, Okla.—A Tulsa woman was sentenced today to serve 47 months in prison and pay restitution in the amount of $88,194.23 to the Internal Revenue Service for her role in a scheme to file and obtain refunds from at least 49 false income tax returns, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma and Special Agent in Charge Damon Rowe of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation’s Dallas field office.

Tameka Denise Johnson, 34, pleaded guilty on May 20, 2015, to the federal charge of false claim against the government. Her co-conspirator Sidney Brook Mayfield, 30, of San Antonio, Texas, was sentenced to six months and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $47,408.91 to the Internal Revenue Service on November 9, 2015. United States District Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell presided over both sentencings.

According to court records, during 2011 and 2012, Johnson and Mayfield obtained personal identification information such as names, dates of birth, addresses, and Social Security numbers from various persons, and used that information to create and file fraudulent income tax returns for the years 2010 and 2011. As part of the scheme Mayfield’s role was primarily to gather the personal information, and Johnson made and electronically filed the tax returns using the stolen information.

The case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin C. Leitch and Clemon Ashley prosecuted the case.

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TULSA, Okla.— A California man, with ties to Miami, Oklahoma, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Claire V. Eagan to serve 210 months in prison to be followed by seven years of supervised release for sexual exploitation of a child, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. of the Northern District of Oklahoma.

Matthew Thomas Chaffin, 32, pleaded guilty on May 16, 2016, after being indicted by a Grand Jury on January 8, 2015.

According to admissions made at the change of plea hearing, Chaffin, also known by his rap music alter-ego, “King Fobia,” coerced a six-year-old to perform sexual acts upon him in a hotel room in Miami, Oklahoma, and filmed the abuse with his cell phone. Chaffin’s crime was discovered after a resident of Northeastern Oklahoma later came across Chaffin’s abandoned cell phone and reported finding suspected child pornography on the phone to law enforcement.

United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) was the investigating agency. Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew J. Hofland and Jeffrey A. Gallant prosecuted the case.

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

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TULSA, Okla.–Gary Edward Hibbing, a former insurance agent and owner of Grand Lake Investments and Insurance in Grove, Oklahoma, was sentenced to serve 27 months in prison for implementing a fraudulent scheme that caused his clients to lose $505,126, announced United States Attorney Danny C. Williams Sr. for the Northern District of Oklahoma. In addition to the prison sentence, United States District Chief Judge Gregory K. Frizzell ordered Hibbing to pay $505,126 in restitution.

Hibbing, 53, of Chino, California, was indicted on August 12, 2015, and he pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud and two counts of unlawful monetary transactions on April 4, 2016.

Hibbing defrauded his victims through a scheme called “twisting”— an insurance industry term that refers to the fraudulent practice by an insurance agent of convincing a client to surrender an existing annuity in exchange for a new one. There is usually a penalty for early termination of an annuity and the client often loses money while the agent makes money on a new commission.

In addition, Hibbing lied to clients to convince them to surrender their existing annuities and immediately purchase new ones. He intentionally failed to disclose early termination penalties. He also provided false information to insurance companies to facilitate his twisting scheme.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and the Oklahoma Insurance Department’s Anti-Fraud Unit. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kevin C. Leitch, Clemon D. Ashley, and Catherine Depew.

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