District of Oregon

PORTLAND, Ore.—An Oregon man was sentenced today to 149 months and 12 days in prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for sex trafficking minors, Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams of the District of Oregon announced.

Darryl Gartley, 23, pleaded guilty on Aug. 12, 2019, to two counts of sex trafficking minors before U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Simon of the District of Oregon, who sentenced him earlier today and remanded him to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

According to facts admitted by the defendant during his guilty plea, in the beginning of October 2016, he moved from California to Portland, Oregon. Shortly after moving to Oregon, the defendant met two 15 year old minor females. In or around December 2016 through January 2017, the defendant posted advertisements on Backpage and Craigslist, offering the minors to engage in sexual acts in exchange for money. The advertisements included pictures of the minors both clothed and nude.

This is the defendant’s second conviction for sex trafficking minors. On May 22, 2017, the defendant was sentenced to seven years imprisonment on a state conviction for sex trafficking minors in California.

The investigation of the case was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service and the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kaylynn Foulon of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Sinha of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Oregon.

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

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

An Oregon man was sentenced today to 149 months and 12 days in prison, to be followed by a lifetime of supervised release, for sex trafficking minors, Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams of the District of Oregon announced.

Darryl Gartley, 23, pleaded guilty on Aug. 12, 2019, to two counts of sex trafficking minors before U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Simon of the District of Oregon, who sentenced him earlier today and remanded him to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

According to facts admitted by the defendant during his guilty plea, in the beginning of October 2016, he moved from California to Portland, Oregon. Shortly after moving to Oregon, the defendant met two 15 year old minor females.  In or around December 2016 through January 2017, the defendant posted advertisements on Backpage and Craigslist, offering the minors for commercial sexual acts.  The advertisements included pictures of the minors both clothed and nude.

This is the defendant’s second conviction for sex trafficking minors.  On May 22, 2017, the defendant was sentenced to seven years imprisonment on a state conviction for sex trafficking minors in California.   

The investigation of the case was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service and the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.  This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Kaylynn Foulon of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ravi Sinha of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Oregon.

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

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

EUGENE, Ore.—Brandon Michael Vanderploeg, 39, of Winchester Bay, Oregon, was sentenced today to 18 months in federal prison and two years’ supervised release for assaulting his then-girlfriend aboard a fishing vessel in August 2018.

According to court documents, on August 16, 2018, members of the U.S. Coast Guard were dispatched to a situation at sea involving the report of a woman who had been assaulted by her boyfriend onboard a commercial fishing vessel. A coast guard helicopter located the vessel 17 nautical miles off the Oregon Coast. Two members of the coast guard boarded the vessel and made contact with Vanderploeg and the victim.

The victim reported that Vanderploeg had assaulted her on several occasions after leaving Winchester Bay. She specifically reported that Vanderploeg held her down, punched her repeatedly in the face, head-butted her in the nose, and slammed her head down on a tool box. The assault resulted in a three-inch laceration to her right cheek, a depressed nasal fracture, multiple contusions to her knees and arms, and a cervical strain.

During the investigation, the coast guard crew who boarded and conducted a sweep of the vessel, immediately noted a strong smell of alcohol coming from Mr. Venderploeg, who admitted to drinking. Mr. Vanderploeg tested positive for alcohol, registering a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .183. An individual operating a commercial vessel is considered intoxicated at a BAC of .04 or more.

On September 30, 2019, Vanderploeg pleaded guilty to assault within the maritime jurisdiction of the U.S. and operating a commercial vessel under the influence of alcohol.

As part of his plea agreement, Vanderploeg agreed to pay restitution in full to his victim as ordered by the court. A restitution hearing will be held at a later date.  

This case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) and prosecuted by Gavin W. Bruce, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

EUGENE, Ore.—David George Hopkins, 61, San Diego, California, was sentenced today to 200 months in federal prison and a life term of supervised release for traveling with the intent to engage in sex with a minor and other related charges.

Hopkins was previously convicted at trial in February 2019 on one count each of attempting to use a minor to produce a visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct, attempting to coerce or entice a minor, traveling with the intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and transferring of obscene material to a minor.

According to court documents and information shared at trial, on June 9, 2017, Hopkins traveled from San Diego to Portland, Oregon believing he would be able to have sex with a 13-year-old girl named Paula along with her mother, Norma, and her mother’s friend, Ana, with whom he had been chatting online. Unbeknownst to Hopkins, he had been chatting with an FBI Special Agent acting as both Norma and Paula, and with a person using the alias Ana.

Hopkins and Ana began chatting online in 2012, and during one of the conversations, Hopkins raised the topic of having sex with a minor female in Peru and sent Ana a photo of what was purportedly him receiving oral sex from a minor.

In February 2017, Hopkins again contacted Ana and they began communicating using Skype and Facebook. In their first few conversations after reconnecting, Hopkins disclosed more details about his sexual relations with a minor in Peru. He also claimed to have had similar illicit contact with a minor in Panama. Hopkins later wrote, “did it bother u i [sic] had sex with young girls?” Hopkins did not present his conduct as a fantasy and Ana did not believe it was.

Concerned by the information shared with her, Ana reported Hopkins to the Eugene Police Department who referred the matter to the FBI. In March 2017, Ana met with an FBI Special Agent and agreed to cooperate with an investigation of Hopkins.

Ana continued chatting with Hopkins and their conversations grew increasingly more detailed and graphic as Hopkins shared information about his claimed past sexual experiences with minors and his desire to continue such behavior. In one conversation, Ana mentioned her fictitious Peruvian friend Norma. Hopkins asked if they could all have sex together. Ana also mentioned that Norma had a daughter named Paula. Hopkins also expressed an interest in having sex with Paula.

Ana told Hopkins that Norma had agreed to let him have sex with Paula. Shortly thereafter, Hopkins began communicating directly with Norma, the FBI Special Agent. The conversation quickly turned sexual and they discussed Hopkins flying to Oregon. In subsequent conversations, Hopkins began asking Norma about having sex with Paula, and, later, began communicating online directly with Paula. Hopkins chatted with Paula about having sex with her, describing in detail what he wanted to do. Hopkins sent Paula a picture of his genitals, and asked her to send him a picture of hers.

In June 2017, Hopkins flew from San Diego to Portland with intent to engage in sexual conduct with Paula. He was met and arrested by the FBI at Portland International Airport upon his arrival. His luggage was searched and Hopkins had brought with him stockings and underwear for Paula. Hopkins’ claims of abusing children have not been corroborated. He was indicted by a federal grand jury in Eugene on June 20, 2018.

This case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Eugene Police Department. It was prosecuted by Amy Potter and Jeff Sweet, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

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. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Anyone who has information about the physical or online exploitation of children are encouraged to call the FBI at (503) 224-4181 or submit a tip online at https://tips.fbi.gov.

PORTLAND, Ore.—John Philip Stirling, 65, a Canadian citizen, pleaded guilty in federal court today to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine under the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (MDLEA).

According to court documents, on April 9, 2019, while on a routine patrol, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Alert detected a sailing vessel traveling north 225 nautical miles from Newport, Oregon. The vessel, named Mandalay, had a home port of Seattle, Washington and visible U.S. registration numbers. When Coast Guard personnel attempted to communicate with Stirling, he went below deck and would only respond via VHF radio. Once Coast Guard personnel determined the Mandalay was a vessel within the jurisdiction of the U.S., they boarded and found Stirling to be the vessel’s sole occupant.

Stirling stated he did not have vessel documentation and refused to produce identification. Upon further questioning, Sterling’s speech began to deteriorate and he displayed signs of a possible drug overdose. Coast Guard personnel administered medical aid to Stirling and evacuated him by helicopter to Astoria, Oregon. He was later transported by ambulance to Adventist Health Portland for additional treatment.

Coast Guard personnel conducted a search of the Mandalay and discovered 28 seven-gallon jugs containing liquid methamphetamine. 

Under the MDLEA, Stirling faces a maximum sentence of life in prison, a $10 million fine and five years of supervised release. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the government will recommend Stirling be sentenced to 87 months in prison. He will be sentenced on April 20, 2020 before U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Mosman.

As part of the plea agreement, Stirling has agreed to forfeit the Mandalay.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

PORTLAND, Ore.—Dominic Caputo, 48, of Clackamas County, Oregon, pleaded guilty today to making false statements while employed as a civilian program manager for the Oregon National Guard Oregon Sustainment Maintenance Site (OSMS).

According to court documents, the Oregon National Guard (ONG) operates and maintains the OSMS at Camp Withycombe, an Oregon Military Department installation in Clackamas County. OSMS supports readiness and training of the U.S. Military by refurbishing out-of-service electronic equipment owned by the U.S. Department of Defense. In the event of an emergency or declaration of war, OSMS deploys refurbished equipment to other military bases or installations. During the time alleged in the Indictment and until 2015, OSMS was the only maintenance site in the United States capable of repairing and rebuilding certain engines in support of the federal military supply system.

From 2010 to 2014, Caputo served as a civilian program manager for the OSMS Power Division where he directed, controlled, and supervised the rebuilding and repair of small and large engines, generators, tires and other types of equipment. Caputo was responsible for certifying completed work and submitting claims to the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Command (CECOM) under the National Maintenance and RESET Programs.

In Fiscal Year 2014, Caputo billed CECOM more than $675,000 for the repair and rebuilding of John Deere Diesel Engines despite the work having not been performed. More than 60 of the engines had already been repaired and billed to CECOM in prior fiscal years. For those engines, Caputo directed Power Division employees to remove and replace original serial numbers and identifying engine plates from the engines to conceal the duplicate billing.

In June 2014, Caputo willingly and knowingly prepared a work order and run test data indicating that the falsified repair work on an engine had been performed. Caputo submitted this false information to CECOM. Caputo’s employment with OSMS was terminated in November 2014 when his fraud was revealed.

In September 2018, a federal grand jury in Portland indicted Caputo for misrepresenting the operational status of military equipment used to maintain a war-ready posture.

Caputo faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $100,000 fine and three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced on May 4, 2020 before U.S. District Court Judge Karin J. Immergut.

As part of the plea agreement, Caputo has agreed to pay more than $2.6 million in restitution to CECOM.

This case was investigated by the FBI, the U.S. Department of Defense Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), and the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID). It is being prosecuted by Michelle Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

PORTLAND—U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams announced today that the District of Oregon collected more than $8.2 million in criminal and civil actions and restitution payments made to victims in Fiscal Year 2019.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $2,925,024 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2019. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.

As a whole, the Justice Department collected $9.3 billion in civil and criminal actions in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2019.

An example of the district’s collection efforts was in U.S. v. Jiang. In April 2019, Quan Jiang pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking in counterfeit trademarks for his role in smuggling into the U.S. and obtaining refunds for thousands of fake and altered Apple iPhones. Jiang imported more than 2,000 inoperable counterfeit iPhones and ultimately obtained approximately 1,500 genuine replacement iPhones, each with an approximate resale value of $600. On October 21, 2019, Jiang was sentenced to 37 months’ imprisonment and three years’ supervised release. In addition, he was ordered to pay $200,000 in restitution to Apple, which he remitted to the court prior to sentencing pursuant to his plea agreement with the government.

A second example is U.S. v. Med-Tech Resource LLC. From 2013 to 2015, Med-Tech defrauded the U.S. by intentionally misrepresenting the value and classification of emergency medical supply goods it imported from China. Med-Tech knowingly and repeatedly filed entry papers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection that misclassified and understated by half the value of the goods it imported, thereby fraudulently reducing the duties and fees it owed on those goods. Med-Tech paid $238,654 as part of a civil settlement to resolve claims against it under the False Claims Act. Med-Tech’s president, Michael Modrich, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud, and was sentenced 18 months in prison and ordered to pay a $26,610 fine.

The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims Fund, which distributes the funds collected to federal and state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.

The largest civil collections were from affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights or environmental laws. In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Internal Revenue Service, the Small Business Administration and the Department of Education.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Jody Tremayne Wafer, 30, of Houston, Texas, was sentenced today to 84 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for organizing and leading a conspiracy to traffic marijuana grown in Portland to Texas.

According to court documents, drug proceeds, in the form of bulk U.S. currency, were returned to Oregon via U.S. mail and passenger luggage on commercial airlines. As part of this investigation, federal authorities have seized approximately 11,000 marijuana plants, 546 pounds of processed marijuana, more than $2.8 million in cash, 51 firearms, 26 vehicles, trailers, pieces of heavy equipment, a yacht, and three houses used as marijuana grow sites, all since August 2017.

On October 2, 2019, Wafer pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiring to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute marijuana, maintaining drug-involved premises and using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

During sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Robert E. Jones ordered Wafer to forfeit any criminally-derived proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes.

Co-defendants Trent Lamar Knight, 31, and Brittany Lesanta Kizzee, 29, also of Houston; Paul Eugene Thomas, 39, and Raleigh Dragon Lau, 33, both of Portland; and Cole William Griffiths, 31, of Hood River, Oregon have all pleaded guilty on related charges. Knight and Kizzee with be sentenced on January 22, 2020 and February 6, 2020, respectively; Lau and Thomas will be sentenced on February 19 and 13, 2020, respectively; and Griffiths will be sentenced on March 5, 2020.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

This case was brought as part of the Justice Department’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the department’s strategy for reducing the availability of drugs in the U.S. OCDETF was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack on drug trafficking by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in coordination with state and local law enforcement.

PORTLAND, Ore.—U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams announced today that two Portland residents have been charged with unlawfully possessing the same stolen handgun.

Christopher Eugene Miller, 28, and Kebrin Larry Jones, 27, are charged in a two-count indictment with unlawfully possessing a stolen Taurus model PT-845, .45 caliber handgun.

Miller and Jones join Desmond Boris Washington, 34, also of Portland, who was previously charged in a separate criminal case for unlawfully possessing the same handgun. All three defendants are convicted felons and not permitted to possess firearms.

Agents recovered the stolen firearm while executing a search warrant on Washington’s Portland residence. All three defendants memorialized their unlawful possession of firearms in a publicly-available music video posted to YouTube.

Miller was arraigned today by U.S. Magistrate Judge Stacie F. Beckerman. Miller and Jones, who was arraigned separately last week, were both ordered detained pending trial. Washington was arraigned in November 2018 and awaits a three-day trial beginning March 3, 2020.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon.

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

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

 

PORTLAND, Ore.—Richard Steven Alberts, II, 31, an Oregon Department of Corrections Officer and resident of Sherwood, Oregon, made an initial appearance today in federal court before U.S. Magistrate Judge John Jelderks.

The court unsealed a 3-count indictment charging Alberts and co-conspirator Joseph Lucio Jimenez, 27, of Gresham, Oregon, with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and distribution of heroin. Alberts and Jimenez are alleged to have conspired with one another and others to distribute methamphetamine and heroin into the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Wilsonville, Oregon, where Alberts is employed.

The Oregon Department of Corrections previously placed Alberts on administrative leave pending this investigation.

Alberts was released pending trial. A jury trial is scheduled for February 25, 2020 before U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Simon.

Jimenez was in pre-trial custody on an unrelated felon in possession of a firearm charge when he was indicted in this case. He will remain in custody and make his first appearance on these new charges at a later date.

This case was investigated by the FBI, Oregon State Police, and Oregon Department of Corrections Office of Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Craig Gabriel and Scott Bradford, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

EUGENE, Ore.—A North Carolina man illegally residing in the Deschutes National Forest was sentenced to federal prison today after months of failing to register as a sex offender.

Russell Joseph Szkolnyj, 51, of Wake County, North Carolina was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release.

According to court documents, in 2006, Szkolnyj was convicted of indecent liberties with a six-year-old child and ordered to register as a sex offender. He was later convicted in 2009 and 2012 for failing to register in North Carolina. By May 2018, Szkolnyj had once again failed to register prompting the Wake County, North Carolina Sheriff’s Office to seek and obtain a warrant for his arrest.

Sometime thereafter, Szkolnyj relocated to Oregon and, in July 2018, was advised by John Day, Oregon police officers of his need to register. Ten days later, Szkonyj, who still had failed to register, was contacted by Bend, Oregon police officers investigating the theft of a paddleboard in a public park. Szkolnyj gave the officers a false name and was ultimately convicted for the theft and sentenced to probation.

On November 2018, Szkolnyj was found to be residing in the Deschutes National Forest. U.S. Forest Service law enforcement officers advised Szkonyj that he could not reside on public land and must immediately vacate the forest. The officers discovered that Szkonyj was still not registered as a sex offender and referred the matter to the U.S. Marshals Service and U.S. Attorney’s Office for prosecution.

The U.S. Marshals Service investigation determined that by January 2019, Szkolnyj was staying in Hood River, Oregon and likely heading toward Portland. The Marshals worked closely with several local law enforcement agencies along the Interstate 84 corridor and in the Portland Metropolitan area to locate and track Szkolnyj. Szkolnyj was arrested by Hillsboro, Oregon police officers on February 23, 2019. At the time of his arrest, Szkolnyj had been in at least five Oregon counties over an 8-month period while failing to register as a sex offender. 

On September 5, 2019, Szkolnyj pleaded guilty to one count of failing to register as a sex offender.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Forest Service and the U.S. Marshals Service with assistance from the Hillsboro and Hood River Police Departments. It was prosecuted by Pamela Paaso, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

WASHINGTON— A U.S. Department of State employee and his spouse were arrested today for their role in an international conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods from the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, Korea.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams of the District of Oregon and Deputy Assistant Secretary Ricardo Colón of the Department of State Diplomatic Security Service made the announcement.

Gene Leroy Thompson Jr., 53, and Guojiao “Becky” Zhang, 39, were indicted by a grand jury in Eugene, Oregon, and charged with conspiracy and trafficking in counterfeit goods.  According to the indictment and other court documents, from September 2017 through December 2019, Thompson Jr. and Zhang allegedly sold counterfeit Vera Bradley handbags from e-commerce accounts to persons throughout the United States. 

Thompson Jr. is employed by the U.S. Department of State as an Information Programs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, Korea.  Thompson Jr. used his State Department computer to create numerous accounts on a variety of e-commerce platforms, all from within a secure space within the Embassy designed to protect classified information.  Once Thompson Jr. created these accounts, Zhang took primary responsibility for operating the accounts, communicating with customers, and procuring merchandise to be stored in the District of Oregon.  Thompson Jr. and Zhang also directed a co-conspirator in the District of Oregon to ship items to purchasers across the United States.   

An indictment is merely an accusation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.   

The Diplomatic Security Service Office of Special Investigations investigated the case with assistance from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.  Senior Counsel Frank Lin of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, Trial Attorney Jay Bauer of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Potter of the District of Oregon are prosecuting the case.

U.S. v. Thompson et. al. Indictment

A U.S. Department of State employee and his spouse were arrested today for their role in an international conspiracy to traffic in counterfeit goods from the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, Korea.

Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams of the District of Oregon and Deputy Assistant Secretary Ricardo Colón of the Department of State Diplomatic Security Service made the announcement.

Gene Leroy Thompson Jr., 53, and Guojiao “Becky” Zhang, 39, were indicted by a grand jury in Eugene, Oregon, and charged with conspiracy and trafficking in counterfeit goods.  According to the indictment and other court documents, from September 2017 through December 2019, Thompson Jr. and Zhang allegedly sold counterfeit Vera Bradley handbags from e-commerce accounts to persons throughout the United States.  

Thompson Jr. is employed by the U.S. Department of State as an Information Programs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, Korea.  Thompson Jr. used his State Department computer to create numerous accounts on a variety of e-commerce platforms, all from within a secure space within the Embassy designed to protect classified information.  Once Thompson Jr. created these accounts, Zhang took primary responsibility for operating the accounts, communicating with customers, and procuring merchandise to be stored in the District of Oregon.  Thompson Jr. and Zhang also directed a co-conspirator in the District of Oregon to ship items to purchasers across the United States.   

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

The Diplomatic Security Service Office of Special Investigations investigated the case with assistance from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided assistance.  Senior Counsel Frank Lin of the Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, Trial Attorney Jay Bauer of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Potter of the District of Oregon are prosecuting the case.

PORTLAND, Ore.— Karanjit Singh Khatkar, 23, and Jagroop Singh Khatkar, 24, residents of Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, pleaded guilty today for conspiring to commit wire fraud and money laundering in a scheme to steal bitcoin from an Oregon resident.

According to the indictment, beginning in October 2017 and continuing until August 2018, the defendants used a Twitter account with the name @HitBTCAssist to trick victims into thinking they were communicating with a customer service representative from HitBTC, a Hong Kong-based online platform used to exchange virtual currency. HitBTC provides its customers with web-based “wallets” to store virtual currency and make transactions.

Using the fraudulent Twitter account, the defendants responded to the Oregon victim’s questions about withdrawing virtual currency from her HitBTC account. The defendants convinced the victim to send information they could use to log on and take over her email, HitBTC and Kraken accounts. Kraken is a U.S.-based online platform that offers services similar to HitBTC.

The defendants initiated transfers of 23.2 bitcoins from the victim’s HitBTC account to Karanjit Khatkar’s Kraken account. Karanjit Khatkar in turn transferred approximately 11.6 in stolen bitcoins to Jagroop Khatkar’s Kraken account. The stolen bitcoins have an estimated present value of approximately $160,254.

On July 18, 2019, Karanjit Khatkar was arrested upon arrival at the McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada and later ordered detained pending trial. Jagroop Khatkar appeared out-of-custody for today’s change of plea hearing.

Conspiring to commit wire fraud and money laundering are punishable by 20 years and 10 years in prison, respectively, a $250,000 fine or twice the pecuniary gains or losses resulting from the offense if over $250,000, and three years’ supervised release. Both defendants will be sentenced on March 17, 2020 before U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Simon.

As mandated by their plea agreements, the Khatkars delivered a check of $142,349 as a prepayment of restitution to their victim at the change of plea hearing. This prepayment along with the $6,000 in U.S currency and $230 in Canadian currency seized by law enforcement equal the value of the bitcoins stolen from the victim. The Khatkars have agreed to pay restitution in full to their victim, which may exceed the prepayment amount, as ordered by the court at sentencing.

This case was investigated by FBI and is being prosecuted by Quinn P. Harrington and Julia E. Jarrett, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Portland resident Isaiah Holt, 31, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and cocaine, money laundering, and illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Holt is a licensed electrician, motivational speaker, and fitness coach.

According to court documents, beginning in July 2016 and continuing until his arrest in April 2018, Holt used his association with a licensed marijuana producer in Portland to divert state-legal marijuana into the black market. Holt sold marijuana in-person to out-of-state customers traveling to Oregon and by mail to remote customers using the U.S. Postal Service.

Holt recruited two individuals to use their bank accounts to receive and launder proceeds of his marijuana sales. Out-of-state customers would send Holt mailing addresses and deposit payments into bank accounts in the names of various third-party associates. Holt would then direct these associates to withdraw the money from their accounts on his behalf. He used the cash to purchase multiple vehicles that he registered in his girlfriend and co-defendant’s name, Marjorie Livington. Holt also directed Livingston, 39, of Portland, to purchase and register firearms for him using her name.

On April 4, 2018, agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) obtained and executed a search warrant on Holt and Livingston’s Northeast Portland residence. Agents found 11.5 grams of cocaine and nearly $2,000 in cash on Holt’s person and drug packaging materials, shipping labels, 14 pounds of marijuana, three firearms, and $46,100 in cash in the residence.

After his arrest and federal indictment, Holt continued to distribute cocaine. From April to August 2019, law enforcement conducted three controlled purchases of cocaine from Holt. While on his way to a fourth pre-arranged buy, Holt eluded a marked police car and later fled on foot, discarding approximately two ounces of cocaine along the way. In total, law enforcement purchased or recovered from Holt approximately 158 grams of cocaine during these purchases.

Conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and cocaine is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine, and three years’ supervised release. Money laundering is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a $500,000 fine or twice the value of property involved, and three years’ supervised release. Illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years’ supervised release.  

Holt will be sentenced on March 9, 2020 by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Michael W. Mosman.

As part of his plea agreement, Holt has agreed to forfeit one Smith & Wesson .40 caliber pistol, one Ruger AR-556 5.56 caliber rifle, one Taurus 9mm pistol, all seized ammunition, and $46,100 in cash. He has also agreed to pay $32,600 to satisfy a forfeiture money judgement.

Livingston was indicted alongside Holt for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana and making false statements during the purchase of a firearm. She is scheduled to plead guilty to the firearms charge on December 16, 2019.

The case was investigated by ATF, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Portland Police Bureau. It is being prosecuted by Julia Jarrett and Leah Bolstad, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

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

PORTLAND, Ore.—David Carl Paulsen, 33, of Bend, Oregon, was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in federal prison and two years’ supervised release for illegally manufacturing and possessing marijuana during a March 2018 butane honey oil (BHO) explosion in Bend.

According to court documents, on March 18, 2018, Bend police officers responded to an explosion at a residence where David Paulsen lived with his wife, Jennifer Paulsen, 34, and their three-year-old daughter. Witnesses reported that, following the explosion, the Paulsens were running around their house, putting items in their truck and car, and telling neighbors not to call the police. Witnesses also reported that David Paulsen gave his daughter to a neighbor and told the neighbor to tell police that she had been with the neighbor during the explosion. Both Paulsens suffered severe burns.

During a search of the residence, investigators discovered more than 34 pounds of marijuana, multiple butane cans, and a BHO extraction device. BHO is a concentrated form of marijuana extracted using highly flammable or combustible solvents. Investigators believe David Paulsen was operating an illegal and unlicensed open flame BHO lab in his house, which caused the explosion.

On July 18, 2018, the Paulsens were charged by a federal grand jury with manufacturing or possessing with intent to manufacture, distribute, or dispense marijuana and endangering a human life while illegally manufacturing a controlled substance.

On September 18, 2019, David Paulsen pleaded guilty to one count of manufacturing or possessing with the intent to manufacture, distribute, or dispense marijuana. Prior to David Paulsen’s sentencing in federal court, Jennifer Paulsen pleaded guilty and was sentenced for unlawful delivery of marijuana in Deschutes County Circuit Court. The government moved to dismiss Jennifer Paulsen’s federal charges during her husband’s sentencing.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Bend Police Department. It was prosecuted by Gavin W. Bruce, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

WASHINGTON—The Department of Justice today announced that it has awarded more than $376 million in grant funding to enhance state, local and tribal law enforcement operations and reinforce public safety efforts in jurisdictions across the United States. $3,350,381 will support public safety activities in the District of Oregon. The awards were made by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs.

“Crime and violence hold families, friends and neighborhoods hostage, and they rip communities apart,” said OJP Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan. “These programs help restore the health and safety of crime-ravaged communities by supporting prevention activities, aiding in the apprehension and prosecution of perpetrators, facilitating appropriate sentencing and adjudication, and providing communities and their residents the means for recovery and healing.”

“Protecting public safety and the fair administration of justice requires steadfast partnership among local, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies. I’m thankful for the culture of collaboration and teamwork that have come to define Oregon’s law enforcement community,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “My sincere hope is that these awards will support and further the tremendous work being done by law enforcement agencies across the state. As an Oregonian, I’m proud of your efforts.”

The awards announced today support an array of crime-fighting initiatives, including the quarter-billion dollar Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grants Program, which funds public safety efforts in 929 state, local and tribal jurisdictions. Funding also supports sex offender registration and notification, law enforcement-based victim services, the testing of sexual assault kits, and programs designed to address youth with sexual behavioral problems. Other awards will focus on wrongful convictions, intellectual property enforcement, innovative prosecution strategies and the safety and effectiveness of corrections systems.

The following awards were made to organizations in the District of Oregon:

Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant Program

City of Beaverton

$15,273

City of Grants Pass

$14,338

City of Portland

$377,097

City of Redmond

$10,575

City of Salem

$87,139

City of Springfield

$24,712

City of Tigard

$10,650

Deschutes County

$28,452

Jackson County

$77,209

Lane County

$127,703

State of Oregon

$1,997,319

Total:

$2,770,467

 

Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART) Support for Adam Walsh Act Implementation Grant Program

Purpose Area 1: Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act Implementation in States, the District of Columbia, principal U.S. Territories, and Federally Recognized Indiana Tribes

Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs

$348,088

Oregon State Police

$231,826

Total

$579,914

Information about the programs and awards announced today is available here. For more information about OJP awards, visit the OJP Awards Data webpage.

The Office of Justice Programs, directed by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan, provides federal leadership, grants, training and technical assistance, and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, assist victims and enhance the rule of law by strengthening the criminal and juvenile justice systems. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Bob Ibenne Ugwa, 50, a Portland resident, was sentenced today to 33 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for making repeated threatening and harassing telephone calls to seven individuals over an eight-year period.

According to court documents, between 2011 and 2018, Ugwa made thousands of anonymous, interstate telephone calls from Oregon to seven victims located in Pennsylvania. In these calls, Ugwa threatened or harassed each victim by breathing heavily, moaning, and saying sexually explicit things. Ugwa called his victims at all hours of the day and night and used spoofing or voice-over-IP to conceal his identity and make it impossible to block his calls.

Ugwa’s victims, who ranged in age from 19 to 62 years old, had no way of knowing where Ugwa lived or if he posed an immediate danger to their physical safety. The victims included a student, a teacher, and mothers who feared for their children’s safety as well as their own. Each of the victims made multiple unsuccessful attempts to stop Ugwa from calling, citing substantial emotional distress.

Ugwa’s conduct stopped briefly after he was arrested and detained in March 2018 for similar conduct that resulted in his conviction in Washington County Circuit Court. His threatening calls resumed shortly thereafter.

Investigators obtained telephone records that covered approximately two years of Ugwa’s conduct between 2016 and 2018. During this time, Ugwa made nearly 5,000 calls to his victims. These records were used to confirm Ugwa’s criminal conduct.

Ugwa previously pleaded guilty to one count of cyberstalking and six counts of anonymous telecommunications harassment.

This case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by Hannah Horsley, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

WASHINGTON—Attorney General William P. Barr launched a national strategy last week to address missing and murdered Native Americans. The Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Initiative places MMIP coordinators in 11 U.S. Attorney’s offices including the District of Oregon who will develop protocols for a more coordinated law enforcement response to missing cases. The plan also calls for the deployment of the FBI’s most advanced response capabilities when needed, improved data collection and analysis, and training to support local response efforts.

“American Indian and Alaska Native people suffer from unacceptable and disproportionately high levels of violence, which can have lasting impacts on families and communities. Native American women face particularly high rates of violence, with at least half suffering sexual or intimate-partner violence in their lifetime. Too many of these families have experienced the loss of loved ones who went missing or were murdered,” said Attorney General William P. Barr. “This important initiative will further strengthen the federal, state, and tribal law enforcement response to these continuing problems.”

“The FBI recognizes the violence that tribal communities face and is fully committed to working with our federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement partners to provide support to those impacted by these crimes,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “We are dedicated to delivering justice and to the FBI’s mission to protect all the people we serve. We reaffirm our focus on allocating resources to serve Native American needs.”

“I’m proud to join Attorney General Barr and Director Wray in announcing this new effort by the Justice Department to address the important and urgent issues attendant to missing and murdered indigenous people. These are real crime victims and their families who have been impacted by inadequate data collection and jurisdictional gaps,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “Pursuing justice on behalf of tribal communities in Oregon is a top priority for the U.S. Attorney’s Office. We have always been deeply committed to reducing violent crime in tribal communities, especially crimes against tribal women and children. Our Indian Country team works tirelessly to be good partners with tribal law enforcement and victim services.”

The strategy has three parts.

Establish MMIP coordinators: The Department of Justice is investing an initial $1.5 million to hire 11 MMIP coordinators in 11 states to serve with all U.S. Attorney’s offices in those states, and others who request assistance. The states are Alaska, Arizona, Montana, Oklahoma, Michigan, Utah, Nevada, Minnesota, Oregon, New Mexico, and Washington state. MMIP coordinators will work closely with federal, tribal, state and local agencies to develop common protocols and procedure for responding to reports of missing or murdered indigenous people. The first MMIP coordinator is already on board in Montana.

Specialized FBI Rapid Deployment Teams: The strategy will bring needed tools and resources to law enforcement. Upon request by a tribal, state, or local law enforcement agency the FBI will provide expert assistance based upon the circumstances of a missing indigenous persons case. FBI resources and personnel which may be activated to assist with cases include: Child Abduction Rapid Deployment (CARD) teams, Cellular Analysis Support Teams, Evidence Response Teams, Cyber Agents for timely analysis of digital evidence/social media, Victim Services Division Response Teams, and others. MMIP coordinators will assist in developing protocols.

Comprehensive Data Analysis: The department will perform in-depth analysis of federally supported databases and analyze data collection practices to identify opportunities to improve missing persons data and share the results of this analysis with our partners in this effort.

More broadly, the MMIP Initiative will involve a coordinated effort by more than 50 U.S. Attorneys on the Attorney General’s Native American Issues Subcommittee (NAIS), the FBI, and the Office of Tribal Justice, with support from the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) and the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW).

Today’s announcement follows the August NAIS meeting in New Mexico and OVW listening session in Michigan, where Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons and violence against women in Indian country were prevalent topics of discussion by U.S. Attorneys, OVW officials, and tribal representatives.

EUGENE, Ore.—A Chinese national pleaded guilty today for directing a scheme whereby hundreds of endangered and vulnerable turtles were purchased in the U.S. and smuggled via U.S. mail and commercial airline flights to China.

Xiao Dong Qin, 34, a resident of Shanghai, China, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to smuggle goods from the U.S.

According to court documents, beginning in at least May 2017 and continuing until June 2018, Qin directed an unindicted co-conspirator in Eugene to purchase more than 300 live turtles from reptile dealers in Alabama, California, Florida, Kentucky, Michigan, New Jersey, Nevada, North Carolina, and South Carolina. All of the turtles purchased and smuggled by Qin are protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.

A two-year investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) revealed that in a 13-month period, Qin facilitated the purchase and transportation of approximately 136 Florida box turtles, 76 eastern box turtles, 57 North American wood turtles, 20 spotted turtles, 18 diamondback terrapins, seven yellow-blotched map turtles, and one Blanding’s turtle. USFWS investigators determined the market value of the turtles involved in this investigation exceeded $250,000 in the Chinese pet trade.

In February 2019, Qin was arrested at the Los Angeles International Airport by USFWS agents when he arrived from Shanghai.

Qin faces a maximum sentence of ten years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced on February 27, 2020 before U.S. District Court Judge Michael J. McShane.

As part of the plea agreement, Qin has agreed to pay nearly $8,000 in restitution to rehabilitation facilities near Chicago and San Antonio; and The Turtle Conservancy near Los Angeles for costs associated with the care of turtles intercepted by law enforcement.

This case was investigated by USFWS with assistance from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. It is being prosecuted by Pamela Paaso, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Photo of Seized Eastern Box Turtle

 

EUGENE, Ore.—Talon White, 29, of Newport, Oregon, pleaded guilty today to one count each of criminal infringement of copyright and tax evasion.

According to court documents, beginning in 2013, White engaged in a scheme to reproduce and distribute for sale thousands of copyrighted movies and television shows. To accomplish this, White set up numerous websites that hosted the infringing material. Members of the public purchased subscriptions to websites created by White and were able to stream or download the video content. The content included movies that had yet to be released to the public. In total, White’s scheme netted more than $8 million.

While operating the scheme, White also underreported his income by more than $4.4 million, willfully evading the payment of more than $1.9 million in taxes owed from 2013 through 2017.

White faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on each of the two charges. He will be sentenced on February 21, 2020 before U.S. District Court Judge Ann L. Aiken.

As part of the plea agreement, White has agreed to pay $669,557 in restitution to the Motion Picture Association of America and $3,392,708 in restitution, including penalties and interest, to the IRS. White has also agreed to forfeit more than $3.9 million seized from his bank accounts, approximately $35,000 in cash, cryptocurrency holdings worth an estimated $424,000, and a 2,248 square foot home in Newport, Oregon worth an estimated $415,000.

These forfeitures are part of two related civil forfeiture cases in the District of Oregon and represent one of the largest civil forfeitures in the district’s history. It is anticipated these forfeited assets will be applied to White’s restitution obligations.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and is being prosecuted by Gavin W. Bruce and Amy Potter, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Kenneth Wenberg, 73, a medical doctor from Heppner, Oregon, was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for failing to report income resulting in a tax loss of approximately $128,000.

“Tax evasion is a crime of greed and arrogance that hurts every citizen who lawfully pays their taxes,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue working closely with our partners at IRS-CI to bring criminal tax evaders to justice.”

“For twenty years, Dr. Wenberg took steps to evade his tax obligation and today’s sentence demonstrates the consequences of those actions,” said IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Justin Campbell. “Tax evasion is IRS-Criminal Investigation’s number one priority and we will continue to prosecute those who fail to pay their fair share of taxes.”

According to court documents, Dr. Wenberg created nominee entities to hide assets and income he personally earned while serving as a physician at the Morrow County Health District (MCHD) and Urgent Health Care Center (UHCC) in Heppner. Dr. Wenberg instructed MDHD and UHCC to make payments for services he performed directly to sham entities to avoid income tax liabilities.

Dr. Wenberg opened numerous bank accounts and purchased real property in the names of his nominee entities. He also paid for his and his family’s personal living expenses out of the nominee accounts. Dr. Wenberg failed to report his income to the IRS, despite knowing he owed taxes.

During sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Marco A. Hernandez ordered Wenberg to pay $128,964 in restitution to the IRS.

On February 12, 2019, Wenberg pleaded guilty to one count of tax evasion.

This case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and is being prosecuted by Clemon D. Ashley and Seth D. Uram, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

PORTLAND, Ore.—A 13-count indictment was filed in federal court today charging James W. Millegan, 62, a former Oregon securities broker, with investment account churning and tax evasion.

Millegan, who currently resides in McMinnville, Oregon, owned and operated J.W. Millegan, Inc., a commission-based investment advisory business serving clients primarily located in the Portland and Salem, Oregon metropolitan areas.

According to the indictment, beginning in March 2012 and continuing until May 2017, Millegan is alleged to have churned the investment accounts of 12 different clients. Churning occurs when a securities broker engages in excessive buying and selling in a client’s account to generate commissions benefitting the broker with no reasonable expectation the client will benefit from the trading. When accounts are churned, clients are prevented from earning investment profits on the money they pay in excessive fees and commissions.

Millegan’s alleged actions generated more than $2.5 million in trading commissions and cost these 12 investors more than $4.3 million in estimated unrealized investment gains.

Additionally, between July 2006 and September 2016, Millegan is alleged to have willfully evaded payment of more than $3.3 million in personal income taxes. To conceal approximately $3.7 million in commissions from the IRS, Millegan allegedly transferred funds to hidden bank accounts and filed false financial statements.

This case was investigated by the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation and is being prosecuted by Seth D. Uram, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

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

Indictment Attached

PORTLAND, Ore.—Juan Carlos Ramon, 33, of Portland, was sentenced today to 180 months in federal prison followed by a life term of supervised release after sexually exploiting two minor victims, aged six and eight, using musical.ly, a social media mobile application now known as TikTok.

According to court documents, on or about June 28, 2017, Ramon began communicating with two minors using the musical.ly app. He used the screen name “@lexithetiger” and pretended to be a minor female. Ramon encouraged his victims to play a “Simon Says” type game where he would send sexually explicit photos of a minor female and ask his victims to take and send him photos imitating the positions and acts depicted. The minor victims agreed and sent Ramon a series of progressively more explicit self-produced images. A relative of the two victims later discovered the communications and reported it to law enforcement.

Ramon was arrested on November 16, 2017. He admitted that for several years he had knowingly chatted with and requested pornographic images from minor females ranging in age from 10-13 years old. Ramon had spent much of his adult life working in education, non-profit programming and family services.

On May 22, 2019, Ramon pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography.

This case was investigated by FBI Portland’s Child Exploitation Task Force (CETF) and prosecuted by Natalie Wight, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

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. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

The FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force (CETF) conducts sexual exploitation investigations – many of them undercover – in coordination with other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. The Portland FBI’s CETF consists of agents and task force officers from the Beaverton Police Department, Portland Police Bureau, Tigard Police Department, Hillsboro Police Department, and the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office. The FBI’s CETF is committed to locating and arresting those who prey on children as well as recovering underage victims of sex trafficking and child exploitation.

Anyone who has information about the physical or online exploitation of children are encouraged to call the FBI at (503) 224-4181 or submit a tip online at www.fbi.gov/tips.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Two former Jacksonville, Oregon residents were sentenced today in federal court for their roles in a conspiracy to traffic marijuana grown in Southern Oregon to Georgia, Illinois, and North Carolina, and launder the proceeds.

Alex David Koplin, 34, was sentenced to 31 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release and Tina Marie Waterfield, 38, was sentenced to 5 years of probation.

According to court documents, in approximately 2011, Koplin moved from Georgia to Oregon to work in the marijuana industry. Within a few years, he purchased property in Jackson County, Oregon and started a marijuana farm. Koplin worked with other marijuana growers to combine harvests, broker sales, and transport marijuana from Oregon to other states. Between November 2014 and June 2016, Koplin coordinated the sale and interstate transport of approximately 260 kilograms of marijuana.

While investigating the interstate trafficking conspiracy, authorities discovered Waterfield, Koplin’s then-girlfriend, was receiving thousands of dollars in out-of-state payments to her PayPal account. Investigators later learned that Waterfield unlawfully manufactured, sold, and shipped marijuana edibles to East Coast customers and laundered the proceeds in an attempt to conceal their source. Between 2013 and 2016, Waterfield’s bank accounts showed approximately $494,000 in unexplained deposits.

In April 2017, investigators executed a federal search warrant on Koplin and Waterfield’s residence and seized marijuana plants; unprocessed cut marijuana; butane honey oil, a cannabis extract; and $44,226 in U.S. currency.

On August 19, 2019, both defendants pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Koplin also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

As part of his plea agreement, Koplin agreed to pay $150,000 to satisfy a forfeiture money judgment. Waterfield agreed to forfeit the $44,226 in U.S. currency seized from the residence she shared with Koplin.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Medford Police Department. It was prosecuted by Steven T. Mygrant and Julia E. Jarrett, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

This case was brought as part of the Justice Department’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the department’s strategy for reducing the availability of drugs in the U.S. OCDETF was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack on drug trafficking by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in coordination with state and local law enforcement.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Dante Emmanuel Hall, 32, of Portland, was sentenced today to 60 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

According to court documents, Hall was involved in an early-morning fight in a downtown Portland parking lot on September 30, 2018 that resulted in two shootings. Surveillance video obtained from an adjacent business recorded Hall arriving with a large group of people and stashing an item near the tire of a parked vehicle. This item was later determined to be a loaded Walther 9mm handgun.

The fight began when an individual attempted to punch Hall in the face. In response, Portland resident Patrick Kimmons brandished a firearm and fired three shots into the chest of Hall’s assailant. One of the rounds struck Hall in the hip. Kimmons was then shot and killed by police after running at officers with a firearm and failing to comply with their commands. Within minutes of the shooting, Hall and another subject arrived at Legacy Emanuel Hospital with gunshot wounds and police were notified.

After attempting to get a statement from a belligerent and uncooperative Hall, the responding officer applied for, obtained and executed a federal search warrant on Hall’s hospital room. The officer located and seized Hall’s cell phone hidden beneath the hospital bed mattress. A search of the phone revealed numerous photos and videos of Hall in possession of three different firearms including what appeared to be the same Walther 9mm handgun found in the parking lot where the fight and shootings occurred.

Hall has a long history of firearm-related offenses and convictions.

On September 6, 2012, he pleaded guilty in federal court to being a felon in possession of a firearm and was sentenced to 21 months in prison. Four days after his release from prison after serving just eight months, Hall was involved in a gang-related shooting during which he fired a handgun outside a Portland strip club. He was convicted of unlawful use of a weapon in Multnomah County Circuit Court and sentenced to 40 months in prison.

Within months of his release from state prison and recommencing federal supervised release, Hall once again violated his supervision terms. On August 9, 2017, he was arrested riding in a car with a known Rollin’ 60s gang member who was driving and eluded police. As a result, on October 19, 2017, he was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for the violation with no re-imposition of supervised release.

Within 48 hours of his final release from federal prison, Hall possessed a firearm and was involved in a June 24, 2018 shooting outside a bar in Vancouver, Washington. The shooting injured an innocent bystander caught in the crossfire. This shooting occurred approximately three months prior to the September 2018 shooting in downtown Portland.

On April 25, 2018, Hall pleaded guilty to one count of felon in possession of a firearm.

This case was investigated by the Portland Police Bureau. It was prosecuted by Leah K. Bolstad and Thomas H. Edmonds, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

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

PORTLAND, Ore.—A Portland couple pleaded guilty today in federal court to defrauding a local elderly couple of approximately $1.8 million in a scheme lasting more than two years.

Ronnie Stevens aka Tim Ephrem, 50, and Tina Ephrem aka Lisa Ann Peterson, 43, each pleaded guilty today to a one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

According to court documents, between September 2016 and December 2018, Stevens and Ephrem conspired with one another to defraud an elderly couple, Adult Victim 1 (AV1) and Adult Victim 2 (AV2).

The scheme began in September 2016 when AV1, who was 76 years old at the time, offered a commercial trailer for sale at his business. Stevens claimed he brokered vehicle sales and could sell the trailer in exchange for a cut of the profit. Stevens did not ultimately sell the trailer, but quickly ingratiated himself with the victim.

Stevens later approached AV1 with an alleged lucrative investment opportunity. Stevens claimed that a friend named Tammy Ward was set to inherit an estate valued in excess of $100 million from her recently deceased father, but could not come up with the fees and legal costs necessary to release the estate. Stevens told AV1 that if he could advance the funds to release the estate, AV1 would receive a substantial return when the estate closed.

AV1 made multiple payments to Stevens over a period of time as Stevens told him various stories about delays and increased costs associated with the release of the estate. As part of the conspiracy, AV1 and AV2 both spoke to a woman on the phone who claimed to be Tammy Ward. Investigators revealed that Tammy Ward was a fictitious identity used by Stevens and Ephrem as part of the fraud scheme.

Between 2016 and 2018, Stevens placed more than 5,000 outgoing calls to AV1 and AV2 and, along with Ephrem, stole more than $1.8 million from their two victims. Stevens and Ephrem spent the stolen money on rent, utility bills, restaurants, cigars, luxury retail purchases and repeated travel to Las Vegas, Nevada and other locations including Hawaii, Anaheim, California, and Spirit Mountain Lodge in Grand Ronde, Oregon.

Stevens and Ephrem were arrested on January 11, 2019. They made their initial appearances in federal court the same day and were ordered detained.

Stevens and Ephrem each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. They will be sentenced on February 13, 2020 before U.S. Chief District Court Judge Michael W. Mosman.

As part of the plea agreement, Stevens and Ephrem have agreed to pay full restitution to their victims as determined and ordered by the court.

This case was investigated by the Tigard Police Department and the FBI and is being prosecuted by Donna Maddux and Julia Jarrett, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

Elder abuse is a serious crime against some of our nation’s most vulnerable citizens, affecting nearly 10% of older Americans every year. Together with our federal, state, local and tribal partners, the Department of Justice and U.S. Attorney’s Office is steadfastly committed to combatting all forms of elder abuse and financial exploitation through enforcement actions, training and resources, research, victim services, and public awareness.

If you or someone you know are in immediate danger, please call 911.

If you or someone you know needs help, abuse complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Department of Justice provides a variety of resources relating to elder abuse victimization through its Office of Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Vasiliy V. Barbiyeru, Jr., 25, of Newberg, Oregon, was sentenced today to nine months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for transmitting threatening interstate communications.

According to court documents, on October 7, 2017, Barbiyeru sent a threatening email to several individuals and groups at Deep Springs College in Big Pine, California where he had been denied admission. Barbiyeru had previously posted a threat directed at the college on the 4chan message board and had sent similar threatening emails to the college’s president and other associated persons.

On March 1, 2019, Barbiyeru was charged with first degree disorderly conduct, a misdemeanor, in Clackamas County Circuit Court after making similar threats of violence to Lake Oswego High School. Barbiyeru was arrested a short time later by the Lake Oswego Police Department. His state charges are still pending.         

On August 22, 2019, Barbiyeru pleaded guilty to one count of threatening interstate communications.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Newberg and McMinnville Police Departments and was being prosecuted by Hannah Horsley, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

WASHINGTON—Today, Attorney General William P. Barr announced the launch of Project Guardian, a new initiative designed to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws across the country. Specifically, Project Guardian focuses on investigating, prosecuting, and preventing gun crimes.

Reducing gun violence and enforcing federal firearms laws have always been among the Department’s highest priorities. In order to develop a new and robust effort to promote and ensure public safety, the Department reviewed and adapted some of the successes of past strategies to curb gun violence. Project Guardian draws on the Department’s earlier achievements, such as the “Triggerlock” program, and it serves as a complementary effort to the success of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). In addition, the initiative emphasizes the importance of using all modern technologies available to law enforcement to promote gun crime intelligence.

“Gun crime remains a pervasive problem in too many communities across America. Today, the Department of Justice is redoubling its commitment to tackling this issue through the launch of Project Guardian,” said Attorney General William P. Barr. “Building on the success of past programs like Triggerlock, Project Guardian will strengthen our efforts to reduce gun violence by allowing the federal government and our state and local partners to better target offenders who use guns in crimes and those who try to buy guns illegally.”

“We are pleased to join Attorney General Barr in announcing Project Guardian—a critical initiative aimed at reducing gun violence in communities across the country. Oregonians are no strangers to the heartbreaking impact gun violence has on the lives of its many victims. Enough is enough; continued violence on our streets is simply unacceptable,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “We will work closely with our Justice Department colleagues to ensure a speedy rollout of Project Guardian so it can begin saving Oregon lives immediately. I believe it will.”

“ATF has a long history of strong partnerships in the law enforcement community,” said Acting Director Regina Lombardo. “Make no mistake, the women and men of ATF remain steadfast to our core mission of getting crime guns off of our streets. ATF and U.S. Attorneys nationwide will leverage these partnerships even further through enhanced community outreach initiatives and coordination with local, state, and tribal law enforcement and prosecutors to cut the pipeline of crime guns from those violent individuals who seek to terrorize our communities. Project Guardian will enhance ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence, to include identifying, investigating and prosecuting those involved in the straw purchases of firearms, lying on federal firearms transaction forms, and those subject to the mental health prohibition of possessing firearms.”

Project Guardian’s implementation is based on five principles:

1. Coordinated Prosecution

Federal prosecutors and law enforcement will coordinate with state, local, and tribal law enforcement and prosecutors to consider potential federal prosecution for new cases involving a defendant who: a) was arrested in possession of a firearm; b) is believed to have used a firearm in committing a crime of violence or drug trafficking crime prosecutable in federal court; or c) is suspected of actively committing violent crime(s) in the community on behalf of a criminal organization.

2. Enforcing the Background Check System

United States Attorneys, in consultation with the Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) in their district, will create new, or review existing, guidelines for intake and prosecution of federal cases involving false statements (including lie-and-try, lie-and-buy, and straw purchasers) made during the acquisition or attempted acquisition of firearms from Federal Firearms Licensees.

Particular emphasis is placed on individuals convicted of violent felonies or misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence, individuals subject to protective orders, and individuals who are fugitives where the underlying offense is a felony or misdemeanor crime of domestic violence; individuals suspected of involvement in criminal organizations or of providing firearms to criminal organizations; and individuals involved in repeat denials.

3. Improved Information Sharing

On a regular basis, and as often as practicable given current technical limitations, ATF will provide to state law enforcement fusion centers a report listing individuals for whom the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) has issued denials, including the basis for the denial, so that state and local law enforcement can take appropriate steps under their laws.

4. Coordinated Response to Mental Health Denials

Each United States Attorney will ensure that whenever there is federal case information regarding individuals who are prohibited from possessing a firearm under the mental health prohibition, such information continues to be entered timely and accurately into the United States Attorneys’ Offices’ case-management system for prompt submission to NICS. ATF should engage in additional outreach to state and local law enforcement on how to use this denial information to better assure public safety.

Additionally, United States Attorneys will consult with relevant district stakeholders to assess feasibility of adopting disruption of early engagement programs to address mental-health-prohibited individuals who attempt to acquire a firearm. United States Attorneys should consider, when appropriate, recommending court-ordered mental health treatment for any sentences issued to individuals prohibited based on mental health.

5. Crime Gun Intelligence Coordination

Federal, state, local, and tribal prosecutors and law enforcement will work together to ensure effective use of the ATF’s Crime Gun Intelligence Centers (CGICs), and all related resources, to maximize the use of modern intelligence tools and technology. These tools can greatly enhance the speed and effectiveness in identifying trigger-pullers and finding their guns, but the success depends in large part on state, local, and tribal law enforcement partners sharing ballistic evidence and firearm recovery data with the ATF.

Federal law enforcement represents only about 15% of all law enforcement resources nationwide. Therefore, partnerships with state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the communities they serve are critical to addressing gun crime. The Department recognizes that sharing information with our state, local, and tribal law enforcement partners at every level will enhance public safety, and provide a greater depth of resources available to address gun crime on a national level.

For more information on Project Guardian, see the Attorney General’s memorandum at: https://www.justice.gov/ag/project-guardian-memo-2019/download.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Jared Elias Case, 26, of Umatilla, Oregon, was sentenced today to 37 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release after repeatedly assaulting his significant other.

According to court documents, on July 19, 2018, Case punched his then-significant other in the face, breaking her nose and causing other injuries. Case was charged and later convicted of fourth-degree misdemeanor assault in Umatilla County Circuit Court and a domestic abuse protection order was issued by the Umatilla Tribal Court. The protection order prohibited Case from having contact with the crime victim pending a full hearing.

One month later, on August 22, 2018, Case went to a party with the crime victim in violation of the protection order. He began drinking and started arguing with her. While she was seated in a chair, Case put his hands around her neck and strangled her until she blacked out. When she regained consciousness, she got up to leave. Case followed her outside, grabbed her by the shoulders and repeatedly punched her in the face until she again lost consciousness. Case fled, abandoning the crime victim who was lying unconscious in a driveway. He later turned himself in to the Umatilla Tribal Police Department.

On July 9, 2019, Case pleaded guilty to one count of assault by strangulation. As part of his plea agreement, Case will pay restitution his victim as ordered by the court. A restitution hearing has been scheduled for February 10, 2020.

This case was investigated by the Umatilla Tribal Police Department and FBI Portland’s Safe Trails Task Force. It was prosecuted by Jennifer Martin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Domestic violence is a serious violent crime that includes both physical and emotional abuse. It is frequently hidden from public view. Many survivors suffer in silence, afraid to seek help or not knowing where to turn. The traumatic effects of domestic violence also extend beyond the abused person, impacting family members and communities.

If you or someone you know are in immediate danger, please call 911.

If you need assistance or know someone who needs help, please contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Many communities throughout the country have developed support networks to assist survivors in the process of recovery.

The StrongHearts Native Helpline offers culturally specific support and advocacy for American Indian and Alaska Native survivors of domestic violence. Please call 1-844-762-8483 or visit www.strongheartshelpline.org for more information.

The Safe Trails Task Force (STTF) unites FBI and federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies in a collaborative effort to combat the growth of crime in Indian Country. STTF allows participating agencies to combine limited resources and increase investigative coordination in Indian Country to target violent crime, drugs, gangs and gaming violations.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Jason Paul Schaefer, 28, of Beaverton, Oregon, was sentenced today to 40 years in federal prison and 5 years’ supervised release for detonating an improvised explosive device on October 11, 2017, assaulting two members of the Portland Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF).

In May 2019, Schaefer was convicted after a six-day trial of two counts of assaulting a federal officer and one count each of carrying and using a destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence, carrying and using an explosive during the commission of a federal felony, unlawful transport of explosive materials, possession of an unregistered destructive device and being a felon in possession of explosives.

“The government may never fully know why Mr. Schaefer amassed a large quantity of dangerous precursor chemicals and the components needed to make a large, remote-detonating bomb. What we do know is that on October 11, 2017, he tried to kill two federal task force officers attempting to make a lawful arrest,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “We owe a debt of gratitude to the JTTF agents and partners and our prosecutors for protecting our community by taking this violent criminal off the streets. This prosecution affirms the critical public safety mission of the JTTF and the need for continued and active participation of all federal, state and local partners.”

“Jason Schaefer’s sentence is commensurate to the danger he posed to his neighbors in the community. The officers and agents of the FBI’s JTTF hope this sentence will serve as a deterrent to others who may consider dangerous or violent illegal actions,” said Renn Cannon, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon.

“The Oregon State Police is proud of the collaboration among our local and federal partners on the JTTF, with our mutual goal to keep Oregon safe. We are grateful that our troopers and taskforce officers were not seriously injured during this rapidly developing event. OSP is also appreciative of the time and attention of the U.S. Attorney's Office to seek justice in this case,” said Travis Hampton, Superintendent of the Oregon State Police.

“The Washington County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the JTTF and partnering agencies for their hard work in this investigation. We value these important public safety partnerships that work tirelessly to keep our communities safe,” said Pat Garrett, Washington County Sheriff.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on or about September 21, 2017, FBI Portland determined that Schaefer had purchased several items that could be used to make a bomb. Schaefer was known to federal investigators after an April 2017 incident where he threatened to kill his landlords and used mercury to deter people from entering an apartment garage he rented in Beaverton. The incident led to Schaefer being arrested and prosecuted for illegally possessing body armor.

On October 11, 2017, federal agents and task force officers executed a search warrant on Schaefer’s Beaverton apartment. Schaefer arrived that morning at a meeting with his probation officer to find two federal agents there to meet him. They notified Schaefer of the warrant and asked if his property was booby trapped. Schaeffer told the agents that it was not and the search commenced.

After a brief conversation with the agents, Schaefer departed in a white sport utility vehicle. The agents followed Schaefer, but lost him. Meanwhile, agents searching Schaefer’s apartment found several explosive precursors and electronic matches. While the search was ongoing, Schaefer returned to the apartment and threatened a task force officer before fleeing.

Two task force officers pursued Schaefer who soon got stuck in traffic. The officers approached Schaefer on foot and ordered him out of the vehicle. Schaefer did not comply, threatened to kill the officers and ignited an explosive device concealed in a cigarette pack. The blast caused significant injury to Schaefer’s hand and sent debris flying into one of the officers, who suffered bodily injury. Following the explosion, Schaefer was arrested and officers found a second cigarette pack containing explosives in his vehicle.

This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon. It was investigated by the Portland JTTF. The Portland JTTF includes FBI special agents and more than a dozen state and local law enforcement officers.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, announced today that Lorenzo Laron Jones, 46, a Portland resident and senior member of the Hoover Criminal Gang, has been indicted for his role in a racketeering conspiracy that caused the shooting deaths of two Portland men.

Jones is charged with racketeering conspiracy and two counts each of murder in aid of racketeering, using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and causing death through the use of a firearm.

The superseding indictment alleges that beginning in June 1989, Jones engaged in a 30-year pattern of violent racketeering activity for the purpose of maintaining and increasing his position in the Hoover Criminal Gang, a criminal enterprise engaged in racketeering in California, Oregon, Washington and elsewhere.

Jones is alleged to have murdered Ascensio Genchi Garcia on July 19, 1998 and Wilbert Butler on September 17, 2017, both in Portland. Additionally, he is accused of attempting to murder six other people, possessing stolen firearms, and distributing cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine.

Jones made his initial appearance in federal court today and was detained pending a four-week jury trial before U.S. Chief District Court Judge Michael W. Mosman.

Jones is named alongside fellow Hoover gang members Ronald Clayton Rhodes, 34, and Javier Fernando Hernandez, 23, both of Portland, in the superseding indictment unsealed today. Rhodes and Hernandez were previously charged with murder in aid of racketeering, using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and causing death through the use of a firearm for the December 16, 2015 murder of Portland resident Kyle Polk.

Jones, Rhodes and Hernandez will be tried together and each face a maximum sentence of death or life in prison.

According to the indictment, the Hoovers are a criminal street gang operating in Oregon, and are known to engage in acts of violence including murder, assault, robbery, sex trafficking and the distribution of narcotics. The Hoovers originated in Los Angeles in the late 1960s and established a presence in Portland in the early 1980s. The gang has a loose hierarchical structure in which members have different amounts of power and influence based on age and gang activity. To maintain status and increase one’s position in the gang, members are expected to carry out violence on behalf of the enterprise.

This case was investigated by the FBI, the Portland Police Bureau, Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, Gresham Police Department, and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

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

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

Attached here is a Timeline

PORTLAND, Ore.—Rene Elene Griffin Nunn, 60, a resident of Vancouver, Washington pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute controlled substances. At the time of the offense, Nunn was a registered nurse at Adventist Medical Center in Portland.

According to court documents, in February 2018, Nunn drove from Vancouver to Portland with approximately 93 grams of heroin in her purse. Based on a joint investigation conducted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Clackamas County Interagency Task Force (CCITF), Nunn was located and arrested driving into Portland.

Nunn faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine and three years of supervised release. She will be sentenced on February 3, 2020 by U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez.

This case was investigated by the DEA and CCITF and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Nathan Wheeler, 43, a certified public accountant (CPA) residing in Portland, was sentenced today to 51 months in federal prison and 3 years’ supervised release for wire fraud and tax evasion.

According to court documents, since 2012, Wheeler owned and operated Bridge City Advisors LLC, an accounting firm that provided investment and legal services to clients throughout the Portland area. Wheeler used his position as a CPA to persuade clients to invest in various real estate development projects. Instead of providing promised rates of return and real estate security interests, Wheeler converted his clients’ money to his own use, living an extravagant lifestyle he could not otherwise afford and building a large marijuana business.

“Mr. Wheeler had an important fiduciary responsibility to act in the best financial interests of his clients. Instead, he repeatedly lied to and stole from them,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “His theft from two minor children who had recently endured the loss of their father is uniquely cold-hearted. The children’s simple requests for funds to cover routine expenses like braces were met with callous lies. My hope is that Mr. Wheeler’s prosecution and time behind bars will offer some measure of solace to his many victims.”

“As a CPA, Mr. Wheeler presented himself to investors as a reliable financial advisor in order to receive investment funds, and yet he greedily diverted those funds for his own investment interests. Additionally, Mr. Wheeler knew his obligation to accurately report income on a tax return, but instead chose to file a false personal tax return to evade his tax obligation,” said IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Justin Campbell. “IRS-Criminal Investigation will hold accountable licensed CPAs who mislead and violate the trust of the public and the profession for their own selfish interests.”

To carry out his scheme, Wheeler would create limited liability corporations (LLCs) as an investment vehicle on behalf of his clients and name himself a member. He would then open bank accounts for his clients and attempt to gain signing authority so he could transfer funds independently.

One of Wheeler’s first victims was a C Trust or “minor’s trust” established for the benefit of two children whose father died in April 2011. Wheeler was named a trustee of the C Trust and facilitated the sale of the father’s business six months after his death. Unbeknownst to the children or their representatives, Wheeler used the proceeds to purchase a large residential real estate development in Washington State called Trotter Downs in his own name. Despite being the primary source of funding to purchase the development, the children were left with no ownership lien on the property. Further, Wheeler repeatedly refused to pay for the children’s expenses, falsely claiming that the funds were frozen because of a lawsuit involving their deceased father.

A second Wheeler victim was a silver medalist for the U.S. Olympic snowboarding team who had created his own line of snowboarding equipment. Wheeler managed to gain signing authority on some of the victim’s bank accounts and made multiple unauthorized transfers of funds to his own accounts. In just two years, Wheeler embezzled more than $962,000 from the athlete victim.

Many of Wheeler’s victims were retirees who entrusted him with their life savings. One retired victim, a former law enforcement officer, invested more $236,000 with Wheeler. Wheeler quickly redirected these funds for his own use. Shortly thereafter, he used $27,500 of the victim’s money to purchase an engagement ring for his fiancé.

In total, between 2011 and 2014, Wheeler defrauded his clients of more than $4.4 million. The government’s financial investigation revealed that within hours or days of receiving client investment funds, Wheeler would redirect the money to various personal uses.

Wheeler spent a large portion of the money he stole from his clients’ investment assets at the Hard Rock Café in Las Vegas, Nevada, at strip clubs, on travel and on expenses related to his marijuana grow operations. Wheeler is a former part owner of Club Rouge, a strip club in Downtown Portland.

U.S. District Court Judge Karin J. Immergut postponed the hearing regarding restitution to his former clients and to the IRS until January 10, 2020.

The government filed a civil forfeiture action on the remaining 25 plots in Trotter Downs that Wheeler had not yet sold. This action prevented Wheeler from continuing to sell off plots for his own benefit.

On May 24, 2018, Wheeler pleaded guilty to one count each of wire fraud and attempting to evade or defeat his tax obligations.

This case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation and the Portland Police Bureau,  and prosecuted by Michelle Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. The related civil forfeiture case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katie de Villiers.

WASHINGTON— Today, the Department of Justice announced it has awarded more than $85.3 million to bolster school security—including funding to educate and train students and faculty—and support first responders who arrive on the scene of a school shooting or other violent incident.

Lane County School District was among the award recipients, receiving $370,289 under the department’s STOP Violence Prevention and Mental Health Training Program.

“These federal resources will help to prevent school violence and give our students the support they need to learn, grow, and thrive,’ said Attorney General William P. Barr. “By training faculty, students and first responders, and by improving school security measures, we can make schools and their communities safer.”

“These awards are an important first step toward addressing the epidemic of school and community violence in our country. We cannot stop until every last student goes to school knowing it is a safe place to learn and grow. It saddens me to know this is not the current reality for many young people. I’m encourage by the work of the Lane County School District and other educators who are working diligently to change this narrative and reality. Congratulations and keep up the great work” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

President Trump signed the STOP School Violence Act into law in March 2018, authorizing grants that are designed to improve threat assessments, train students and faculty to provide tips and leads, and prepare law enforcement officers and emergency professionals to respond to school shootings and other violent incidents. The grant programs are managed by OJP’s Bureau of Justice Assistance and the Justice Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance, within the Department’s Office of Justice Programs, and the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services manage the programs and administer the grants, which include funds to:

• Develop school threat assessment teams and pursue technological solutions to improve reporting of suspicious activity in and around schools;
• Implement or improve school safety measures, including coordination with law enforcement, as well as the use of metal detectors, locks, lighting and other deterrent measures;
• Train law enforcement to help deter student violence against others and themselves;
• Improve notification to first responders through implementation of technology that expedites emergency notifications;
• Develop and operate anonymous reporting systems to encourage safe reporting of potential school threats;
• Train school officials to intervene when mentally ill individuals threaten school safety; and
• Provide training and technical assistance to schools and other awardees in helping implement these programs.

For more details about these individual award programs, as well as listings of individual 2019 awardees, visit https://go.usa.gov/xVJuV.

About the Office of Justice Programs:

The Office of Justice Programs, directed by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan, provides federal leadership, grants, training, technical assistance and other resources to improve the nation’s capacity to prevent and reduce crime, assist victims and enhance the rule of law by strengthening the criminal justice system. More information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

About the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services:

The COPS Office is a federal agency responsible for advancing community policing nationwide. Since 1994, the COPS Office has invested more than $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of approximately 130,000 officers and provide a variety of knowledge resource products including publications, training and technical assistance. For additional information about the COPS Office, please visit www.cops.usdoj.gov.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Quan Jiang, 30, a Chinese national and former engineering student at Linn Benton Community College in Albany, Oregon, was sentenced today to 37 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for trafficking fake and altered Apple iPhones.

According to court documents, between January 1, 2016, and February 1, 2018, Jiang would regularly receive packages containing between 20 and 30 counterfeit iPhones from associates in Hong Kong. Using various assumed names, Jiang would submit each iPhone to Apple in person or online for a warranty replacement; he would then ship the genuine replacement devices he received back to China for resale. In exchange for his service, Jiang’s associate would pay Jiang’s mother, also residing in China, who would in turn deposit the money into Jiang’s bank account.

Jiang’s scheme first came to the attention of law enforcement on April 20, 2017, when U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) seized a shipment of 28 iPhone 6 devices en route to Jiang in Corvallis, Oregon. Later, on October 23, 2017, CBP seized a similar shipment of 25 iPhone 7 Plus devices addressed to Jiang. In both instances, CBP sent Jiang a notice of seizure, indicating that Apple representatives had confirmed the phones were counterfeit. Nevertheless, three more shipments—each with 29 iPhones—were seized by CBP in November 2017.

Jiang later admitted to investigators that he knew the devices were counterfeit and that it was illegal to submit them to Apple as genuine products still under warranty. In just over two years, Jiang imported more than 2,000 inoperable counterfeit iPhones. He ultimately obtained approximately 1,500 genuine replacement iPhones, each with an approximate resale value of $600.

On April 25, 2018, Jiang pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking in counterfeit goods.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) and prosecuted by Ryan W. Bounds, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, announced today the indictment of three people for their roles in a complex scheme to launder proceeds from the sale of illegal narcotics by facilitating the transfer of bulk cash from Mexican drug trafficking organizations to Chinese nationals residing in the U.S.

Shefeng Su, 39, Xinhua Li Yan, 39, and Xiancong Su, 46, are each charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering. Shefeng Su and Li Yan were residents of Portland during the timeframe alleged in the indictment.

According to the indictment, the defendants’ money laundering scheme was designed to remedy two separate problems: drug trafficking organizations’ inability to repatriate drug proceeds into the Mexican banking system and wealthy Chinese nationals restricted by China’s capital flight laws from transferring large sums of money held in Chinese bank accounts for use abroad.

The first group, drug traffickers, are challenged by their inability to transport U.S. currency acquired from the sale of illegal narcotics in the U.S. to Mexico while avoiding detection by law enforcement and Mexican banking regulators. Mexico’s anti-money laundering regulations limit the amount of cash deposits of U.S. dollars that Mexican financial institutions can receive. As a result, drug trafficking organizations work with professional money launderers to bundle and sell bulk U.S. dollars in order to convert them to pesos, a more readily depositable currency in Mexico.

The second group, Chinese nationals living outside China, are challenged by China’s limit on the amount of personal funds that can be transferred out of Chinese bank accounts for use in a foreign country. Currently, China limits these transfers to $50,000 per year. As a result, some Chinese nationals have a need to acquire large quantities of U.S. dollars via other means.

The defendants’ scheme facilitated the transfer of cash between these two groups. Their money laundering organization would facilitate the transfer of funds from the buyer’s Chinese bank account to another Chinese bank account held by the money laundering organization. Once the Chinese renminbi (RMB) were transferred between these bank accounts, the funds were repatriated back to Mexico and converted to pesos to complete the money laundering cycle. This scheme has been described by some as the “Chinese Underground Banking System.”

All three defendants are at-large and believed to be outside the U.S.This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Kristopher Ives, 33, of Portland, pleaded guilty today to fraud in connection with computers for illegally accessing the computer network and data of his former employer, Gearbox Studios, after being terminated.

According to court documents, in 2008, Ives began working as a computer programmer for Gearbox Studios, a Portland-based digital marketing agency. Ives eventually became Gearbox Studio’s lead programmer for server architecture and support, a position of trust with access to the computer networks and data of both the company and the company’s clients.

Between February and May 2015, after being terminated from his position, Ives illegally accessed Gearbox’s computers to steal and tamper with data. He used this data to attack Gearbox’s servers and various websites belonging to Gearbox customers. Ives deleted nearly 20,000 products from customer websites and changed prices for various items. Ives also stole names and credit card numbers from these Gearbox customer websites and threatened to release the information unless Gearbox made payment to a bitcoin address.

Ives faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced on January 22, 2020 before U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Simon.

As part of the plea agreement, Ives has agreed to pay restitution to his victims as ordered by the court.

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Oregon Cybercrime Task Force and is being prosecuted by Quinn P. Harrington, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Any public or private entity suspecting a cyber intrusion or attack should contact the FBI through the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov or by calling your nearest FBI office.

WASHINGTON—The Department of Justice announced today that it has awarded over $273.4 million in grants to improve public safety, serve victims of crime, combat violence against women and support youth programs in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

Six tribes and one tribal commission in the District of Oregon were awarded over $3.3 million in funding. Award recipients include the Burns Paiute Tribe; Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission; Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians; Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon; Coquille Indian Tribe; Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians; and the Klamath Tribes.

“Violent crime and domestic abuse in American Indian and Alaska Native communities remain at unacceptably high levels, and they demand a response that is both clear and comprehensive,” said Attorney General William P. Barr. “We will continue to work closely with our tribal partners to guarantee they have the resources they need to curb violence and bring healing to the victims most profoundly affected by it.”

“These awards underscore the Justice Department’s sincere commitment to improving public safety in tribal communities throughout the U.S. Pursuing justice on behalf of tribal crime victims in Oregon remains a key focus of the U.S. Attorney’s Office. We will not stop until all tribes have the resources they need to keep their communities safe and effectively enforce the administration of justice on tribal land,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Nationwide, 236 grants were awarded to 149 American Indian tribes, Alaska Native villages and other tribal designees through the Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation, a streamlined application for tribal-specific grant programs. Of the $118 million awarded via CTAS, just over $62.6 million comes from the Office of Justice Programs, about $33.1 million from the Office on Violence Against Women and more than $23.2 million from the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. A portion of the funding will support tribal youth mentoring and intervention services, help native communities implement requirements of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, and provide training and technical assistance to tribal communities. Another $5.5 million was funded by OJP’s Bureau of Justice Assistance to provide training and technical assistance to CTAS awardees.

The Department also announced awards and other programming totaling $167.2 million in a set-aside program to serve victims of crime. The awards are intended to help tribes develop, expand and improve services to victims by supporting programming and technical assistance. About $25.6 million of these awards were awarded under CTAS and are included in the $118 million detailed above.

CTAS funding helps tribes develop and strengthen their justice systems’ response to crime, while expanding services to meet their communities’ public safety needs. The awards cover 10 purpose areas: public safety and community policing; justice systems planning; alcohol and substance abuse; corrections and correctional alternatives; children’s justice act partnerships; services for victims of crime; violence against women; juvenile justice; violent crime reduction; and tribal youth programs.

The Department also provided $6.1 million to help tribes to comply with federal law on sex offender registration and notification, $1.7 million in separate funding to assist tribal youth and nearly $500,000 to support tribal research on missing and murdered indigenous women and children and other public safety-related topics.

Today’s announcement is part of the Justice Department’s ongoing initiative to increase engagement, coordination and action on public safety in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

A listing of today’s announced CTAS awards is available at: https://www.justice.gov/tribal/awards. A listing of all other announced tribal awards are available at: https://go.usa.gov/xVJuE.

MEDFORD, Ore.—Five people have been charged for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and heroin manufactured in Mexico in and around Klamath Falls, Oregon, announced Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Rogelio Gomez-Arias, 23, Irving Beas Ceballos, 34, Alexis Chavez-Franco, 22, and Domingo Matias-Hernandez, 36, are each charged by indictment with conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine between May and October 2018. Additionally, Ceballos is charged with possessing methamphetamine and heroin with the intent to distribute and Gomez-Arias, Chavez-Franco and Matias-Hernandez are charged with distributing methamphetamine.

Juan Rodriguez-Ramirez, 62, is charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

All defendants are known to reside in and around Klamath Falls and Dorris, California.

On October 9, 2019, a coordinated, multi-agency law enforcement operation was conducted to dismantle the drug trafficking organization. Five federal search warrants were executed in Klamath Falls and Dorris. Investigators seized more than 37 pounds of methamphetamine, 440 grams of heroin, 14 firearms, and nearly $50,000 in cash and arrested all five defendants.

All five defendants made their first appearances in federal court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark D. Clarke and were detained pending further proceedings. Conspiring to distribute and possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine carries a maximum sentence of life in prison with a 10-year mandatory minimum.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Basin Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team (BINET) and the Siskiyou Unified Major Investigation Team (SUMIT). It is being prosecuted the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

An indictment and criminal complaint are only accusations of a crime, and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case was brought as part of the Justice Department’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the department’s strategy for reducing the availability of drugs in the U.S. OCDETF was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack on drug trafficking by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in coordination with state and local law enforcement.

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

Throughout the past two years, we have partnered with all levels of law enforcement, local organizations, and members of the community to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.   According to FBI’s Uniform Crime Report released this week, the violent crime rate decreased for the second consecutive year, down 3.9 percent from the 2017 numbers.

“The revitalized Project Safe Neighborhoods program is a major success,” said Attorney General William P. Barr. “It packs a powerful punch by combining advanced data with local leadership, further reducing violence in communities across the country and improving overall public safety. U.S. Attorneys continue to focus their enforcement efforts against the most violent criminals and work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal police. The Justice Department’s relationships across the board have never been stronger.”

“The goal of PSN is to decrease violent crime and victimization in Oregon. It remains a key focus of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the entire federal law enforcement community,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “With the assistance of our federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners, we have made significant progress toward this goal throughout the state. We look forward to continuing our efforts over the coming year.”

As we celebrate the two-year anniversary of the revitalized PSN program, here are some of the highlights of our PSN actions over the past year:

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon works in partnership with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute the district’s most violent offenders under the PSN program. Recent prosecutions include:

U.S. v. Wilson

In December 2018, Gregory Rex Wilson, 52, of Portland, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release for distributing heroin and illegally possessing a firearm.

According to court documents, Wilson was part of a drug trafficking organization that transported heroin from El Monte, California to the Portland metropolitan area. The investigation revealed that Wilson was being supplied with heroin by “Chino Antrax,” later identified as co-defendant Pablo Flores. Flores had actively been trafficking heroin to Portland for more than a year. At the time of his arrest on December 12, 2016 in Portland, Wilson had 880 grams of heroin, 100 Xanax pills and a loaded Ruger 9mm pistol in his vehicle. Four additional firearms were later found in a second vehicle owned by Wilson, including one with an obliterated serial number.

The case was investigated by the Clackamas County Interagency Task Force (CCITF), FBI, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Portland Police Bureau. It was prosecuted by Matthew J. Semritc, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

U.S. Dencklau et al.

In January 2019, a federal grand jury returned a five-count superseding indictment charging six members and associates of the Gypsy Joker Outlaw Motorcycle Club (GJOMC) for racketeering, kidnapping and murder.

GJOMC National President Kenneth Earl Hause, 61, of Aumsville, Oregon; Mark Leroy Dencklau, 58, of Woodburn, Oregon; Earl Deverle Fisher, 48, of Gresham, Oregon; Ryan Anthony Negrinelli, 36, of Gresham; Joseph Duane Folkerts, 61, of Battleground, Washington; and a sixth unnamed defendant were charged, as members and associates of the GJOMC, with conspiring to conduct and participate in the activities of a racketeering enterprise.

Additionally, Dencklau, Fisher, Negrinelli, Folkerts and the unnamed defendant were charged with murder in aid of racketeering; kidnapping in aid of racketeering, resulting in death; kidnapping resulting in death; and conspiracy to commit kidnapping, resulting in death for the June 30 to July 1, 2015 kidnapping and murder of Robert Huggins, a former GJOMC member and resident of southeast Portland, for the purpose of maintaining and increasing their positions in the GJOMC criminal enterprise.

Dencklau, Fisher and Tiler Evan Pribbernow, 37, of Portland were first charged in a four-count indictment unsealed in July 2018. Pribbernow pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiring to conduct and participate in the activities of a racketeering enterprise on November 7, 2018. Dencklau and Fisher are detained pending trial.

This case was investigated by the PPB and ATF, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Clark County, Washington Sheriff’s Office, the Oregon State Police, and the Oregon and Washington State Crime Labs. Leah K. Bolstad and Steven T. Mygrant, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon, are prosecuting the case with Rebecca A. Staton, Trial Attorney for the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section.

U.S. v. Ochoa

In April 2019, Jonathan Alan Ochoa, 31, of Talent, Oregon, was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

According to court documents, between July and August 2017, Ochoa agreed and conspired with co-defendants Gonzalo Manzo, Jr. and Rodolfo Quevedo to send more than 500 grams of cocaine from California to Oregon to sell and distribute to others. During this time, Ochoa and Manzo negotiated a sale of cocaine with an undercover agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) in exchange for multiple firearms.

On August 17, 2017, at Manzo’s request, Quevedo transported approximately 1000 grams of cocaine from California and delivered it to Ochoa in the Medford area. The firearms and cash were intended to be transported back to California but agents arrested Ochoa and his co-conspirators and the firearms were seized by law enforcement.

This case was investigated by ATF and is being prosecuted by Nathan J. Lichvarcik and Adam E. Delph, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

U.S. v. Lara

In April 2019, Edwin Enoc Lara, 34, a former campus safety officer at Central Oregon Community College and resident of Bend, Oregon, was sentenced to life in federal prison for kidnapping and carjacking.

According to court documents, between July 24 and July 26, 2016, Lara went on a violent crime spree that left multiple victims and their families in its wake. Early on the morning of July 24, 2016, Lara brutally murdered 23-year-old Bend resident Kaylee Sawyer, a crime for which he would later receive a life sentence in Deschutes County Circuit Court.

After the murder, on July 25, 2016, Lara fled to Salem, Oregon where he carjacked and kidnapped a young woman at gun point. Lara told his victim he was a police officer and showed her news reports about what he had done to Kaylee Sawyer. He then forced her to travel with him to California. Along the way, Lara decided to stop at a hotel in Cottage Grove, Oregon. Inside the hotel room, Lara handcuffed his victim, forced her to take sleeping pills, and made a series of physical advances leading her to believe he might sexually assault her.

A short while later, after receiving a phone call and growing concerned that law enforcement was nearing his location, Lara left the hotel with his victim and continued traveling toward California. At some point during the drive, Lara sought to change vehicles to avoid detection and stopped at two rest areas looking for another vehicle to steal.

In the early morning hours on July 26, 2016, Lara stopped at a motel in Yreka, California where he spotted an elderly man near his vehicle. Lara parked, grabbed his victim by the hand and approached the man. With his gun visible, Lara told the man that he needed his vehicle. When the man wouldn’t comply, Lara shot him in the abdomen. At this point, Lara’s victim pleaded with him to let her go, but he again grabbed her hand and forced her to flee with him by foot to a nearby gas station.

At the gas station, Lara found his next victims, two young men and their elderly grandmother, sitting inside a vehicle. After threatening to shoot them, Lara entered their vehicle with his Oregon victim and forced them to drive off. During the drive, Lara confessed to his victims that he had an “urge to kill” and had already murdered a young woman in Bend and shot a man in Yreka. Lara eventually dropped his three California victims on the side of the road, again threatened to kill them and continued driving southbound with his Oregon victim. Soon after, California law enforcement caught up with Lara and arrested him.

This case was investigated by the Redmond Police Department, Bend Police Department, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, Oregon State Police and other local law enforcement agencies in California with the assistance of the FBI. It was prosecuted by Nathan J. Lichvarcik, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

U.S. v. Crane

In April 2019, Shawn Terrell Crane, 39, of Portland, was sentenced to 168 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for conspiring to distribute oxycodone and laundering drug proceeds.

The case against Crane was the result of a lengthy FBI and Portland Police Bureau investigation of a Portland-area drug trafficking organization that included a three-month wiretap of Crane’s cell phones. Crane was the leader of a criminal conspiracy that sourced oxycodone pills from Fresno, California and transported them to Oregon by vehicle and U.S. mail for distribution in and around the Portland metropolitan area.

During the course of the conspiracy, Crane was responsible for distributing more than 30,000 oxycodone pills and arranging for hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash to be deposited into third-party bank accounts to conceal its source. He used violence and the threat of violence to bolster his position of authority within the drug trafficking organization, intimidate competition and achieve his objectives. On one occasion, Crane videotaped himself assaulting and robbing a drug customer while armed with a gun. Crane then sent the video to others, boasting of his willingness to engage in violence without backup from his associates.

The FBI and Portland Police Bureau investigated this case. It was prosecuted by Leah K. Bolstad and Peter D. Sax, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon.

U.S. v. Soares

In May 2019, Christopher Michael Soares, 35, of Southern Oregon, was sentenced to 160 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release for possessing with the intent to distribute methamphetamine in Bend, Oregon.

According to court documents, on June 28, 2016, police officers in Bend stopped Soares while he was driving a vehicle with two other occupants. When officers searched Soares’ person, they found 99 grams of methamphetamine, 56 grams of heroin and a 9mm firearm. Soares was later arrested on three separate occasions in Jackson County for additional drug and firearms offenses.

In September 2016, Soares was charged by federal criminal complaint for the June 2018 incident in Bend. He later pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Facing state and federal charges, the parties, including state prosecutors in Jackson County, agreed to a global resolution to resolve all of Soares’ pending criminal cases.

This case was jointly investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Bend Police Department, Medford Police Department and Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Nathan J. Lichvarcik, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

U.S. v. Alston

In July 2019, Dannie Kay Alston, 67, was sentenced to 110 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for robbing four Oregon and Southwest Washington banks in a four-week period beginning in August 2017.

On February 21, 2019, Alston pleaded guilty in federal court to the following bank robberies:

• August 7, 2017; Chase Bank in Vancouver, Washington; collecting $2,300
• August 15, 2017; Wells Fargo Bank in Medford, Oregon; collecting $4,690
• August 24, 2017; Wells Fargo Bank in Salem, Oregon; collecting $1,317
• September 9, 2017; First Interstate Bank in Roseburg, Oregon; collecting $3,441

In each of his robberies, Alston attempted to disguise his identity by wearing sunglasses and some type of ball or ski cap. He communicated with the targeted bank tellers primarily through handwritten notes or signs. At his last robbery, in Roseburg, witnesses were able to provide a description of Alston’s getaway vehicle, leading to his quick arrest by the Oregon State Police. Police recovered the note used in the Roseburg robbery, a starter’s pistol with loaded caps, a Taser, sunglasses, wig and $3,441 cash from Alston’s person and vehicle.

Alston is a career offender with a criminal history spanning five decades and four states. He has previous burglary convictions in California and Texas, robbery convictions in California, Florida and Oregon, as well as assault, theft and narcotics convictions.

This case was investigated by the FBI, Clark County Washington Sheriff’s Office, Medford Police Department, Oregon State Police and Roseburg Police Department. It was prosecuted by Pamela Paaso, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

U.S. v. Caro-Gonzalez

In August 2019, Rodrigo Caro-Gonzalez, 35, a noted drug trafficker residing in Eagle Point, Oregon, was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and illegally possessing a firearm.

According to court documents, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) began investigating Caro-Gonzalez in May 2016. A few months later, based on a tip, the Oregon State Police (OSP) stopped a car driven by one of Caro-Gonzalez’s associates carrying more than 30 pounds of methamphetamine. The investigation of Caro-Gonzalez continued when, in March 2017, a person believed to have obtained methamphetamine from Caro-Gonzalez was stopped with approximately 16 pounds of methamphetamine.

Later in March 2017, a confidential source met with Caro-Gonzalez and a third associate. The group arranged a drug deal. The deal never occurred, but the associate was arrested a few days later with more than five pounds of methamphetamine. The DEA then executed a search warrant at Caro-Gonzalez’s Eagle Point residence and seized $9,585, an AK-style firearm, a thirty-round magazine, a pistol and ammunition. Caro-Gonzalez admitted to being in the U.S. illegally, making his possession of the weapons unlawful.

This case was investigated by DEA, the Springfield Police Department, INET and OSP and prosecuted by Jeffrey Sweet, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

U.S. v. Friesen

In August 2019, Michael James Friesen, 33, of Prineville, Oregon, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for conspiracy to transfer and unlawful possession of a machine gun.

According to court documents, between May and June 2018, Friesen agreed to broker the sale of a Guide Lamp, Model M3A1, .45 ACP caliber machine gun for co-defendant John Widener Jordan, 38, also of Prineville. Between May 30 and June 5, Friesen discussed the sale price of the firearm with an undercover agent from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) posing as a potential purchaser. Friesen confirmed for the agent that he had seen the firearm function as a machine gun.

On June 6, Friesen met the undercover agent in a motel room in Prineville. Shortly thereafter, Jordan brought the firearm to the motel room and completed the transaction in exchange for $3,000 in cash. Jordan in turn paid Friesen for arranging the sale.       

This case was investigated by the ATF and is being prosecuted by Nathan J. Lichvarcik, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

U.S. v. Walsh

In September 2019, Jon Michael Walsh, 46, of Neskowin, Oregon, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and 10 years’ supervised release for possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine and heroin and illegally possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

According to court documents, in February 2018, Walsh was on post-prison supervision for a 2015 federal firearms conviction, when probation officers conducted a routine search of his vehicle outside a community center and found a stolen loaded pistol and concealed packages of methamphetamine and heroin.

During a subsequent search of Walsh’s Neskowin residence, officers found additional distribution quantities of methamphetamine and heroin. Walsh later admitted to buying and selling methamphetamine and heroin in Lincoln and surrounding coastal counties to support his own methamphetamine addiction.

Walsh previously served nine years in federal prison for distributing methamphetamine while in possession of a firearm after being sentenced in June 1998.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Oregon State Police, Tillamook County Sheriff’s Office and the Lincoln City Police Department. It was prosecuted by Frank R. Papagni, Jr., Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, and Michelle Branam, Lincoln County District Attorney.

U.S. v. Fuller

In September 2019, Tyler Wayne Fuller, 30, of Madras, Oregon, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for his role in a Central Oregon methamphetamine distribution conspiracy and for robbing a Madras bank.

According to court documents, Fuller is the son of career criminal and known drug dealer Ronald Wayne Thrasher, 49, also of Madras. By age 28, Fuller had his own extensive criminal history and had spent the majority of his adulthood incarcerated. In December 2016, after Fuller was released from federal prison, Thrasher began giving his son methamphetamine to sell. Within a month, Thrasher was supplying and Fuller was distributing quarter and half-pound quantities of methamphetamine throughout Central Oregon.

In February 2017, Fuller’s volatile relationship with his father led to a confrontation. Armed with a pistol, Fuller unsuccessfully attempted to rob his father of his methamphetamine supply. The resulting estrangement left Fuller without a supplier and illicit income. Now homeless, he continued selling drugs obtained from his father’s customers. In August 2017, Fuller robbed a U.S. Bank in Madras, collecting $517 in cash.

Thrasher was convicted at trial in August 2019 for purchasing and transporting methamphetamine for distribution and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He will be sentenced on February 4, 2020. Fuller is the first of 11 defendants to be sentenced for their involvement in his father’s drug trafficking conspiracy.

This case was investigated by Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Oregon State Police. It was prosecuted Frank R. Papagni Jr. and Judi Harper, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon, with the assistance of the Jefferson, Crook and Deschutes County District Attorney’s Offices.

U.S. v. Rhodes et al.

In September 2019, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the indictment of two Hoover Criminal Gang members for the 2015 murder of Portland resident Kyle Polk.

The indictment alleges that on December 16, 2015, Javier Fernando Hernandez, 23, and Ronald Clayton Rhodes, 34, both of Portland, murdered Kyle Polk for the purpose of maintaining and increasing their positions in the Hoover Criminal Gang, a criminal enterprise engaged in racketeering in California, Oregon, Washington and elsewhere.

Hernandez and Rhodes are both charged with murder in aid of racketeering, using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and causing the death of Polk through the use of a firearm and will stand trial together. Murder in aid of racketeering carries a maximum sentence of death or life in prison.

This case was investigated by the FBI, the Portland Police Bureau, Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

These enforcement actions and partnerships are part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally based strategies to reduce violent crime. To learn more about Project Safe Neighborhoods, go to www.justice.gov/psn.

PORTLAND, Ore.—On Wednesday, October 2, 2019, Jody Tremayne Wafer, 30, of Houston, Texas, pleaded guilty for organizing and leading a conspiracy to traffic marijuana grown in Portland to Texas.

According to court documents, drug proceeds, in the form of bulk U.S. currency, were returned to Oregon via U.S. mail and passenger luggage on commercial airlines. As part of this investigation, federal authorities have seized approximately 11,000 marijuana plants, 546 pounds of processed marijuana, more than $2.8 million in cash, 51 firearms, 26 vehicles, trailers, pieces of heavy equipment, a yacht, and three houses used as marijuana grow sites, all since August 2017.

Wafer pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiring to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute marijuana, maintaining drug-involved premises and using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

Conspiring to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute marijuana and maintaining drug involved premises carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and a lifetime of supervised release. Using or carrying a firearm in relation to a drug trafficking crime carries a maximum sentence of life in prison with a mandatory minimum of seven years, a $250,000 fine and five years’ supervised release.     

Wafer will be sentenced on January 8, 2010 before U.S. District Court Judge Robert E. Jones.

As part of his plea agreement, Wafer has agreed to forfeit any criminally-derived proceeds and property used to facilitate his crimes identified by the government prior to sentencing.

Co-defendants Trent Lamar Knight, 31, and Brittany Lesanta Kizzee, 29, also of Houston; Paul Eugene Thomas, 39, and Raleigh Dragon Lau, 33, both of Portland; and Cole William Griffiths, 31, of Hood River, Oregon have all pleaded guilty on related charges. Knight and Kizzee with be sentenced on October 22, 2019 and January 7, 2020, respectively; Lau and Thomas will be sentenced on December 10 and 18, 2019, respectively; and Griffiths will be sentenced on November 20, 2019.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

This case was brought as part of the Justice Department’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the department’s strategy for reducing the availability of drugs in the U.S. OCDETF was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack on drug trafficking by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in coordination with state and local law enforcement.

PORTLAND, Ore.—U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams announced today that members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office will join Portland-area community and law enforcement organizations and community members for the fourth-annual Building Bridges of Understanding in Our Communities event on October 24, 2019, hosted by the Muslim Educational Trust (MET) in Tigard, Oregon.

This year’s theme is Confronting Hate. This event brings criminal justice and community leaders together to share perspectives and engage in discussions on how to best respond to and prevent future hate-motivated incidents and crimes.

A panel of diverse community perspectives will discuss personal and community experiences with hate-motivated incidents and crimes, reporting, and trauma. The event will conclude with a listening session and facilitated discussion.

Presenters include leaders and subject matter experts from the Western States Center, Portland United Against Hate, Coalition of Communities of Color, Coalition Against Hate Crimes, Latino Network, Oregon District Attorney’s Association, Oregon Association of Chiefs of Police, Oregon Attorney General’s Office, FBI, U.S. Attorney’s Office and others who will present information reviewing recent racial violence trends and data from our community as well as legal and enforcement efforts at the local, state and federal levels.

Community members from Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington counties are encouraged to attend this free event. Registration is required. Lunch and refreshments will be provided.

• WHAT: Building Bridges of Understanding in Our Communities: Confronting Hate
• WHEN: Thursday, October 24, 2019 from 8:30am-3:00pm
• WHERE: Muslim Educational Trust – 10330 SW Scholls Ferry Road, Tigard, Oregon

The Building Bridges of Understanding in Our Communities event series brings leaders from public safety and civil society organizations together to build and strengthen trust with one another and to cultivate that trust within the communities served. The first building bridges event was held in the fall of 2016 at the Muslim Educational Trust. Since the inaugural event, two additional annual events have been held.

The event series is jointly hosted by the Muslim Educational Trust, Washington County Sheriff’s and District Attorney’s Offices, City of Portland New Portlander Commission, City of Lake Oswego, Clackamas County District Attorney’s Office, Vision Action Network, Korean American Coalition, New Portlanders Foundation, Tigard Police Department, Portland Police Bureau, Multnomah County Sheriff’s and District Attorney’s Offices, Urban League of Portland and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

If you have media inquiries or would like to book interviews with steering committee members, please contact Stephen Mayer of the Washington County District Attorney’s Office: Stephen_Mayer@co.washington.or.us, 971-708-8219.

Media outlets are also welcome to contact the following steering committee members directly:

• Sahar Bassyouni; Muslim Educational Trust; sahar@metpdx.org
• Wajdi Said; Muslim Educational Trust; wajdibek@yahoo.com
• Theresa Kohlhoff; Lake Oswego City Council; tkohlhoff@ci.oswego.or.us
• Jack Hanna; New Portlanders Foundation; jackahanna@gmail.com
• Sho Dozono; New Portlanders Commission; shodozono@gmail.com
• Linda Castillo; Community Member and Commissioner for Hispanic Affairs; linda.castillo124@gmail.com
• Kezia Wanner; Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office; kezia.wanner@mcso.us
• Glenn Montgomery; Vision Action Network; glenn@visionactionnetwork.org

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PORTLAND, Ore.—A coordinated, multi-agency law enforcement operation was conducted today to dismantle a vast international drug trafficking organization that conspired to distribute methamphetamine, heroin and cocaine manufactured in Mexico throughout the Portland Metropolitan Area, announced Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

Federal search warrants were executed at 13 locations throughout the Portland area. Investigators seized 22 pounds of methamphetamine, four ounces of heroin, 11 ounces of cocaine and seven firearms and arrested 20 defendants. These defendants join 10 others who are already in custody on related state charges.

A 60-count indictment unsealed today, charges 41 people for their roles in the drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy.

“While communities across our state and country are reeling from the opioid and addiction crisis, there are criminal organizations whose sole purpose is to profit off addiction. At its peak, this network was bringing more than 130 pounds of methamphetamine and heroin into the Portland area every week—nearly 600,000 individual user doses,” said U.S. Attorney Williams. “This country and communities in Oregon are drowning in deadly substance abuse.  Vulnerable people addicted to drugs of all kinds are the targets of greedy criminals pushing their deadly poison. We will continue to work with our federal, state, local and tribal partners to disrupt these criminal organizations.” 

“We are very proud of the hard work and commitment by our detectives, as well as the cooperation from our law enforcement partners. The ability to collaborate with other departments was instrumental in the resolution of this case,” said Robin Sells, Chief of Police of the Gresham Police Department. “As a result of the hard work between these agencies, arrests were made and literally hundreds of thousands of dollars in narcotics are off the streets.”

“I am extremely proud of all of the law enforcement officers involved in this operation,” said Brad Bench, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Seattle. “Their dedication to law enforcement, and the strength of our partnerships, has resulted in the disruption of a complex drug organization, the removal of large quantities of narcotics from our community and may have saved countless lives.”

The indictment alleges that beginning in November 2018, two men, Samuel Diaz and Faustino Monroy, organized, led, and ran an organization responsible for trafficking hundreds of pounds of methamphetamine and heroin, with an estimated wholesale value of $15 million, into the Portland area for resale.

Diaz and Monroy, who both remain at large in Mexico, worked closely with two Portland-based associates: Edgar Omar Quiroz Rodriguez and Gerson Fernando Martinez-Cruz. Quiroz and Martinez-Cruz ran a Portland distribution cell which, at its peak, was responsible for distributing as much as 77 pounds of methamphetamine and 55 pounds of heroin every week in and around Portland.

The organization’s numerous sources of supply would import large quantities of illegal drugs that were taken to stash houses throughout the metro area where they were processed and prepared for sale. A large network of local drug dealers would the distribute user quantities of each drug. The organization would routinely change stash locations, rotate vehicles and phones, and pay individual couriers to take time off to avoid detection by law enforcement.

Members of the organization obtained rifles and handguns in the U.S. and attempted to transport them to associates in Mexico to strengthen and protect the organization and its activities. Prior to today’s takedown, investigators had seized 44 firearms including assault rifles, shotguns and handguns.

Additionally, the organization used a Southeast Portland mini market called Tienda Mexicana Gonzalez Inc., also known as the Gonzalez Bros. Market, to launder their proceeds via international electronic money wires. These wires were deliberately structured using low-denomination transfers to avoid triggering a suspicious activity report as required by U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

In total, the organization’s drug trafficking and money laundering efforts netted more than $1 million in less than one year.

This case was investigated by the Gresham Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, and the FBI. The Drug Enforcement Administration, Oregon State Police, Portland Police Bureau, and Multnomah, Clackamas, and Clark County Sheriff’s Offices participated in the takedown.

An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

This case was brought as part of the Justice Department’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, the centerpiece of the department’s strategy for reducing the availability of drugs in the U.S. OCDETF was established in 1982 to mount a comprehensive attack on drug trafficking by disrupting and dismantling major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in coordination with state and local law enforcement.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, announced today that a second Hoover Criminal Gang member has been indicted for the 2015 murder of Portland resident Kyle Polk.

            Ronald Clayton Rhodes, 34, is charged with murder in aid of racketeering, using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and causing the death of Polk through the use of a firearm.

            The indictment alleges that on December 16, 2015, Rhodes, along with co-defendant Javier Fernando Hernandez, 23, also of Portland, murdered Polk for the purpose of maintaining and increasing his position in the Hoover Criminal Gang, a criminal enterprise engaged in racketeering in California, Oregon, Washington and elsewhere.

Rhodes made his initial appearance in federal court today and was detained pending a four-week jury trial on November 12, 2019 before U.S. Chief District Court Judge Michael W. Mosman. Hernandez and Rhodes face the same charges and will stand trial together.

Murder in aid of racketeering carries a maximum sentence of death or life in prison.

            According to the indictment, the Hoovers are a criminal street gang operating in Oregon, and are known to engage in acts of violence including murder, assault, robbery, sex trafficking and the distribution of narcotics. The Hoovers originated in Los Angeles in the late 1960s and established a presence in Portland in the early 1980s. The gang has a loose hierarchical structure in which members have different amounts of power and influence based on age and gang activity. To maintain status and increase one’s position in the gang, members were expected to carry out violence on behalf of the enterprise.

This case was investigated by the FBI, the Portland Police Bureau, Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

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

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

PORTLAND, Ore. – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division hosted two community roundtables on Wednesday to address the problem of sexual harassment in housing, kicking off a statewide initiative to combat this violation of federal law.

The initial Portland meetings included representatives from state and local law enforcement agencies, legal aid, advocacy organizations, the Fair Housing Council of Oregon, shelters, housing providers, victim advocates, and tribal representatives. These organizations often interact with and represent vulnerable populations who are most likely to become victims of sexual harassment in housing. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue this effort throughout other parts of Oregon to help educate victim advocates, social service organizations, and law enforcement, about the protections provided by the federal Fair Housing Act, and to encourage reporting of such violations across the state.

“Sexual harassment in housing is often underreported, and it is an egregious violation of a person’s right to fair housing,” U.S. Attorney Billy Williams said. “Landlords or managers, who use their power over tenants to extort sexual favors, or even commit assaults, is intolerable. Our office is dedicated to uncovering such violations where they exist and vigorously enforcing federal law.”

The Department of Justice, through the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Civil Rights Division, enforces the federal Fair Housing Act, which prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, and disability. Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination prohibited by the Act.

The Justice Department’s nationwide initiative, seeks to identify barriers to reporting sexual harassment in housing, increase awareness of the Justice Department’s enforcement efforts – both among survivors and those they may report to – and collaborate with federal, state, and local partners to increase reporting and help survivors quickly and easily connect with federal resources.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is working closely with the DOJ Civil Rights Division to ensure people are aware of options to help victims experiencing sexual harassment or who experienced sexual harassment in housing in the past. Often it is community organizations, such as local law enforcement, legal aid offices, fair housing organizations, shelters and transitional housing providers, that are in the best position to identify housing abuses and recommend that victims report sexual harassment to DOJ’s Civil Rights Division. By increasing awareness and building strong partnerships, we can better combat this problem in our community.

The roundtables are an integral part of a DOJ initiative that seeks to identify barriers to reporting sexual harassment in housing, increase awareness of its enforcement efforts - both among victims and those they may report to - and collaborate with federal, state, and local partners to increase reporting and help women quickly and easily connect with federal resources. DOJ encourages anyone who has experienced sexual harassment in housing, or knows someone who has, to contact the Civil Rights Division by calling (844) 380-6178 or emailing: fairhousing@usdoj.gov. Individuals who believe they may have been victims of such discrimination may also file a complaint with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon by contacting Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrian Brown, at 503-727-1000.

PORTLAND, Ore.—A federal criminal complaint was unsealed today charging a Salem, Oregon man with threatening Social Security Administration (SSA) officials after being denied Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.

Erick Carlsen, 45, is charged with transmitting threatening communications in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 875(c).

According to the complaint, on July 24, 2019, Carlsen allegedly engaged in threatening behavior at an SSA benefits review hearing in Salem. At the hearing, Carlsen yelled at the Administrative Law Judge and threatened future physical violence. Salem police officers responded and Carlsen left without further incident. Carlsen livestreamed his actions on Facebook and later posted additional threats.

On September 11, 2019, Carlsen left a voicemail for an SSA Office of Inspector General Agent in which he said, “I’m going to go to this hearing and people are going to [expletive] pay. Do you understand? You guys are going to [expletive] pay.” The same day, Carlsen posted another threat on Facebook entitled “Why do People Go on Shooting Sprees.” In the post, Carlsen claimed that he would “…make the front page and air on every TV station” and “…make sure the whole country stands up and takes notice…”

The next day, investigators from the Federal Protective Service (FPS) interviewed Carlsen at his home in Salem. During the conversation, Carlsen was visually agitated and appeared to be preparing for a fight. Carlsen told the investigators he suffered from mental health issues that cause anger and that he does not leave his property because he is never sure what he will do. When they discussed his upcoming SSA hearing, Carlsen said that he would not bring weapons, but that he could not promise he wouldn’t hurt anyone.

A concerned citizen notified law enforcement of Carlsen’s Facebook posts and later told investigators, “I really feel like he has the potential to follow through.” On September 17, 2019, Carlsen was arrested by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office without incident.

Carlsen made his first appearance in federal court today in Portland. He will be arraigned on October 16, 2019.

This case was investigated by the SSA Office of Inspector General, FPS, FBI, Marion County Sheriff’s Office and Salem Police Department and is being prosecuted by Rachel Sowray, Special Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

A criminal complaint is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Anyone who has information about real or perceived threats of violence should call the FBI at (503) 224-4181 or submit a tip online at https://tips.fbi.gov. For immediate threats to life and safety, please call 9-1-1.

Screenshot of a Facebook post threatening to attack the Social Security Administration

 

PORTLAND, Ore.—John William Schantz, 28, of Portland, was sentenced today to 100 months in federal prison and four years’ supervised release for illegally importing fentanyl from China for the purpose of making and selling counterfeit prescription pills.

According to court documents, in November 2017, a U.S. Postal Inspection Service inspector discovered a suspicious package addressed to Schantz’s girlfriend at the U.S. Postal Service Portland Air Cargo Center. The inspector noted that the package was listed as containing a “pants zipper,” but felt like it contained a powdery substance. Agents from Homeland Security Investigations and officers from the Portland Police Bureau’s Drugs and Vice Division were called to investigate.

After finding that the package contained a white powdery substance, investigators transported it to the Oregon State Police Laboratory for further examination in a safe environment. The lab later determined the package contained approximately 102 grams of para-fluoroisobutryl fentanyl, a powerful opioid and Schedule I controlled substance. Investigators soon learned that between August and November 2017, there were 16 additional parcels shipped to Schantz’s residence. Of those, at least four were associated with known sources of controlled substances and pill manufacturing equipment.

On November 29, 2019, investigators conducted a controlled delivery of the package, now containing an inert substance, to Schantz’s residence. Investigators searched Schantz’s residence and seized two pill presses, a Ruger semi-automatic .22 caliber handgun, 245 rounds of .22 caliber ammunition, approximately 800 assorted counterfeit oxycodone and valium pills, various binding agents, die casts, digital scales and $1,142 in cash. When interviewed, Schantz admitted ordering fentanyl on the internet and having it shipped to his residence in his girlfriend’s name to avoid detection.

On July 16, 2019, Schantz pleaded guilty to one count of unlawfully importing a controlled substance.

This case was investigated by the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Interdiction Taskforce, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Portland Police Bureau Drugs and Vice Division. It was prosecuted by Scott M. Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

The Oregon HIDTA program was established by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) in June of 1999. In 2015 the program expanded into Idaho and was renamed the Oregon-Idaho HIDTA. The Oregon-Idaho HIDTA consists of 14 counties and the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. Counties in the HIDTA include Oregon’s Clackamas, Deschutes, Douglas, Jackson, Lane, Linn, Malheur, Marion, Multnomah, Umatilla and Washington counties, and Idaho’s Ada, Bannock and Canyon counties.

Opioid abuse affects communities across the nation. The CDC reports that in 2017, there were 70,237 drug overdose deaths in the U.S. Opioids and synthetic opioids were alone responsible for 47,600 overdose deaths or nearly 68% of all overdoses. Drug overdose is now the leading cause of injury or death in the United States.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 80 to 100 times more powerful than morphine and 30 to 50 times more powerful than heroin. A 3-milligram dose of fentanyl—a few grains of the substance—is enough to kill an average adult male.

If you or someone you know suffers from addiction, please call the Lines for Life substance abuse helpline at 1-800-923-4357 or visit www.linesforlife.org. Phone support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also text “RecoveryNow” to 839863 between 8am and 11pm Pacific Time daily.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Kermit Tyler Poulson, 40, was sentenced today to 14 months in federal prison and one year of supervised release for transmitting threatening communications with the intent to extort Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler.

“Using social media to threaten violence against any person regardless of that person’s position in our community is wrong. The Portland JTTF actively investigates all threats of violence,” said Billy J. Williams, U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon. “Federal law enforcement will continue working with our state and local partners to respond quickly to threats. These partnerships prevent many horrific acts of violence from occurring.”

“True threats victimize individuals and undermine the foundations that make our country a place where we can disagree, debate and find common ground,” said Renn Cannon, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon. “The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force and our partners remain committed to keeping our shared community free of violence and intimidation.”

According to court documents, on October 9, 2018, Poulson posted multiple threatening comments on Mayor Wheeler’s personal Instagram account. Poulson threatened to firebomb the mayor’s home and office if he did not immediately fire Portland police officers recently involved in an on-duty shooting. Investigators tracked the IP address associated with the comments to a Portland residence where Poulson was staying. Poulson was present when investigators searched the property and after initially making a number of misleading statements, admitted that he alone was responsible for the comments.

On July 3, 2019, Poulson pleaded guilty to one count of transmitting threatening communications with the intent to extort Mayor Wheeler.

This case was investigated by the Portland FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF) and the Portland Police Bureau (PPB). The Portland JTTF includes FBI special agents and more than a dozen state and local law enforcement officers.

Screenshot from Instagram showing threats made.

 

Guns, drugs, and cash found in the residence. Gun found in vehicle.

PORTLAND, Ore.—Adan Torres-Nieves, 45, of Milton-Freewater, Oregon, was sentenced today to 120 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release for possessing with the intent to distribute nearly four pounds of heroin in Eastern Oregon.

According to court documents, in early 2017, investigators from the Blue Mountain Narcotics Enforcement Team (BENT) began investigating Torres-Nieves who appeared to be supplying a low-level drug dealer named Carlos Cisneros-Razo. Investigators established probable cause to arrest Torres-Nieves and execute search warrants on both of his and Cisneros-Razo’s residences.

During the search of Torres-Nieves’s residence in Milton-Freewater, investigators found approximately four pounds of heroin, a pound of methamphetamine, and five pounds of cocaine; $21,046 in cash; digital scales; a stolen revolver and a camouflage ballistic vest. A second revolver was found in Torres-Nieves’ bedroom.

On May 6, 2019, Torres-Nieves pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin. During sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Michael H. Simon ordered Torres-Nieves to forfeit two firearms seized from his residence and the $26,166 seized from his person and residence.

On October 1, 2018, Cisneros-Razo was sentenced to 60 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

This case was investigated by BENT and the FBI and prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.