District of Oregon

The abuse began when the victim was 14 years old

PORTLAND, Ore. — U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown sentenced Thomas Lee Bear, 31, of Lewiston, Idaho, yesterday to 78 months in federal prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release.  In January 2013, Bear pled guilty before Judge Brown to sexual abuse of a minor.  After Bear completes his prison term, he will be required to register as a sex offender and undergo sex offender treatment.  Bear has been in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest in this case in July 2012.

“It is absolutely repugnant for grown men to use the internet to prey upon teenage girls,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “The rate of sexual abuse against girls in Indian Country is tragically high.  The prison sentence in this case should serve as a warning to anyone who would do harm to the children of Tribal Nations.”

Bear admitted to having sexual intercourse with a girl on the Umatilla Indian Reservation in the fall of 2011.  The victim, who was 14 years old at the time the sex abuse began, is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.  Bear further admitted that he used a social networking website to persuade, induce, entice, and coerce the victim into having sexual intercourse.

This case was investigated by the Umatilla Tribal Police Department and the FBI’s Office in Pendleton, Oregon. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Gabriel.

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Justice Department announced today that the engineering firm, Multi/Tech Engineering Services, Inc., (Multi/Tech) located in Salem, Oregon, has agreed to pay $60,902.70 to settle a lawsuit pending in the U.S. District Court of Oregon, which alleges that Multi/Tech violated the Fair Housing Act by designing an apartment complex with steps and other features that made it inaccessible to persons with disabilities.  This settlement will both assist in compensating victims of discrimination and in removing accessibility barriers at Gateway Village, a 275-unit complex in Salem.  In May 2013, the Justice Department and the Fair Housing Council of Oregon (FHCO) had previously settled with the developers of the property under similar injunctive terms and monetary relief.  This settlement resolves the remaining substantive claims of the lawsuit.

Under the terms of the parties’ agreement, Multi/Tech will pay $7,902.20 in damages to the FHCO, which had intervened in the lawsuit as an aggrieved person under the Fair Housing Act.  Multi/Tech will also pay an additional $32,000 to a settlement fund for the purpose of compensating individuals with disabilities who were impacted by the alleged accessibility violations.  Furthermore, Multi/Tech will pay $21,000 to a fund established to take extensive actions to make the complex accessible to persons with disabilities.  These corrective actions, which will be taken by the developer, include removing steps from sidewalks, widening interior doorways, reducing threshold heights, replacing excessively-sloped portions of sidewalks, and installing properly-sloped curb ramps to allow persons with disabilities to access the sidewalks from the parking areas.

“Steps, narrow doors and other accessibility barriers prevent people with disabilities from exercising the same rights to obtain housing of their choice that other people enjoy,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Jocelyn Samuels. “We will hold builders and designers accountable and those who fail to follow the law will face enforcement action.”

“The right to accessible housing is a fundamental protection afforded by law,” stated U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “I am committed to working with the Fair Housing Council of Oregon, and our federal, state, and local partners to ensure that those who design and construct housing units make them accessible to persons with disabilities in compliance with the Fair Housing Act.”

The lawsuit, filed in September 2011, arose as a result of a complaint filed by the Fair Housing Council of Oregon with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). After HUD investigated the complaint, it issued a charge of discrimination and referred the matter to the Justice Department.

“This settlement highlights the importance of the designer in guaranteeing equal opportunity access to housing for people with physical limitations. We encourage building design professionals around the country to understand their responsibility under the Fair Housing Act’s 1988 design and construction requirements and go well beyond these minimum standards to make all housing fully accessible, ” said Pegge McGuire, Executive Director, Fair Housing Council of Oregon.

“For more than two decades the law has required that newly-built multifamily housing provide equal access to people with disabilities,” said Bryan Greene, HUD’s Acting Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “Throughout that time, HUD and the Department of Justice have educated builders, design professionals and others on those requirements, most recently through guidance issued this past April. Where those efforts fail, our agencies will gain compliance through enforcement of the law.”

Individuals who are entitled to share in the settlement fund will be identified through a process established in the settlement. Persons who believe they were subjected to unlawful discrimination at Gateway Village either when they lived there or considered living there should contact the Justice Department toll-free at 1-800-896-7743 mailbox # 9993, or e-mail the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov.

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin and disability. More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt. Individuals who believe that they have been victims of housing discrimination can call the Housing Discrimination Line at 1-800-896-7743, e-mail the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov, or contact HUD at 1-800-669-9777.

For more information, please see the attached consent order Here

PORTLAND, Ore. – A former resident of Pacific City pleaded guilty in federal court today to stealing more than $70,000 from the Social Security Administration (SSA), the Oregon Department of Human Services (DHS), and Medicaid.  Peter C. Byrne, 87, admitted before U.S. District Court Judge Garr M. King that between 1992 and 2012, he concealed from SSA and DHS his travels outside the United States and his compensation, while receiving Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and food stamps.  Sentencing is scheduled for December 3, 2013, at 10:30 a.m.

According to documents filed by the government and Byrne’s admissions today, Byrne began receiving SSI in 1990 and was required to report to SSA certain travel outside the United States, as well as his income and compensation.  Between 1992 and 2012, Byrne traveled outside the U.S. for more than 30 days at least 15 times, on some occasions remaining outside the U.S. for more than four months.  Between 2009 and 2012, Byrne also maintained bank accounts with Barclays of England and Wells Fargo where he held more than $85,000 at one time, and failed to disclose these bank accounts to SSA and DHS.  When Byrne was questioned by SSA and investigators in 2012, he failed to disclose all of his travels and assets.  When SSA asked to see his passport, Byrne advised that he had accidentally destroyed his passport by running it through the washing machine.

The plea agreement requires Byrne to pay restitution to SSA, DHS, and Health and Human Services.  Byrne has deposited $25,000 with the court to be applied towards restitution immediately following sentencing.

The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations.  It is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Helen L. Cooper, as part of a partnership venture between the Social Security Administration Office of General Counsel and the United States Attorney’s Office.

PORTLAND, Ore. – A federal grand jury has indicted 18 defendants on various charges in connection with a cockfighting operation in Irrigon, Morrow County, Oregon, involving ten “derbies” occurring from April 1, 2012, through May 19, 2013.

Arrests on the charges occurred today at various sites in Oregon and Washington.  Those arrested in Oregon are scheduled to appear for arraignment before a federal magistrate judge in Portland on Friday, August 16, 2013, at 1:30 p.m.  Those arrested in Washington will appear for arraignment before a federal magistrate judge in Yakima, Washington.

            Six individuals are charged with operating an illegal gambling business:

• John Wesley Walker, 67, of Irrigon;
• Irina Walker (aka Irina Kreuger), 60, of Irrigon;
• Mario Perez (aka El Cuba), 62, of Hermiston, Oregon;
• David Sanchez, 29, of Irrigon;
• Jose Luis Virgen Ramirez, 48, of Hermiston; and
• Aurelia Garcia Mendoza, 33, of Irrigon.

These six persons are also charged, along with 12 others, with conspiracy to violate the Animal Welfare Act by conducting unlawful animal fighting ventures on ten occasions.  The additional defendants are:

• Apolinar Munoz Gutierrez (aka Polo), 37, of Irrigon;
• Cecilio Mendoza Magana, 63, of Kennewick, Washington;
• Mauro Gonzalez Pulido (aka Cala), 47, of Zillah, Washington;
• Ruben Saltos Godina (aka Chino), 42, of Moxee, Washington;
• Arturo Olmedo Silva (aka El Havolin, Cepillo), 45, of Hermiston;
• Eduardo Cisneros (aka Mariachi), 27, of Sunnyside, Washington;
• Eulalio Delamora Anguiano (aka Lalo), 44 of Moxee, Washington;
• Francisco Javier Vega (aka Sergio Gonzalez Manzano), 39, of Plymouth, Washington;
• Oscar Acosta Navarrete, 46, of Prosser, Washington;
• Antonio Dominguez Robles (aka Tono, Memo), 37, of Pasco, Washington;
• Gerardo Gomez Castillo (aka Aguilo), 54, of Wapato, Washington; and
• Valente Piedra Magana, 38, of Union Gap, Washington.

“Cockfighting is illegal under federal law and under the laws of all 50 states,” Amanda Marshall, United States Attorney for the District of Oregon, stated.  “Besides being a barbaric practice, cockfighting jeopardizes public health and safety and facilitates the commission of other criminal acts,” she added.

Each of the charged offenses – illegal gambling (one count), unlawful animal fighting venture (ten counts), and conspiracy (one count) – carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.  The indictment also alleges that, upon conviction of illegal gambling, defendants John Wesley Walker and Irina Walker are subject to the forfeiture of their real property and buildings used in the gambling business, located on Depot Lane in Irrigon, Morrow County, Oregon.

A copy of the 12-count indictment is attached.  An indictment is a charging instrument only, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The case was investigated by the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Agriculture, with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Oregon State Police, the Washington State Gaming Commission, and the Blue Mountain (Oregon) Narcotics Team.  The case is being prosecuted in Oregon by Assistant U. S. Attorney Stephen F. Peifer.

For more information, please see the attached Indictment Here

PORTLAND, Ore. – Lisa Mottaghi, 46, of Ocean Park, Washington, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Ancer L. Haggerty to 33 months in prison for the crime of wire fraud involving a “sweetheart swindle” of a retired widower from St. Helens, Oregon.  In addition to her sentence, the Court ordered Mottaghi to serve three years of supervised release following her release from prison and to repay $649,536 in restitution.

“Schemes like this devastate innocent victims and their families.   It is especially cruel when fraudsters target senior citizens,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “This conviction demonstrates what happens to those who abuse vulnerable citizens in our community.”

At the sentencing hearing, the government laid out for the Court Mottaghi’s scheme to defraud.  In June of 2005, Lisa Mottaghi began borrowing significant sums of money from Gerald Voorhees, a 74-year old widowed retiree from Saint Helens, after developing a relationship of trust with him.  By 2009, Voorhees told Mottaghi that he would not loan her any more money.

Shortly thereafter, Voorhees was contacted by email by Tonia Jorgenson, a woman identifying herself as the sister of Mottaghi.  Jorgensen told Voorhees about her stable life (albeit with a sick husband) and promised to repay the debts of her sister.  However, not long after the first email, Jorgenson wrote Voorhees again with the terrible news of her husband’s death and the fact that her ability to repay the debts of her sister would be delayed due to family interference in the settling of the estate.  To make matters worse, she soon claimed her own finances were compromised as a result of her husband’s death and she too needed the financial help of Voorhees.  The truth, in fact, was that Jorgenson did not exist.  She was the fraudulent creation of Mottaghi.

Writing as her sister, Mottaghi began a two-year scheme to defraud Voorhees.  With a tale of loss and vulnerability, Mottaghi created a character designed to elicit compassion and sympathy from him.  Over a short period of time, Mottaghi manufactured, in the name of Jorgenson, a fraudulent romance complicated by health concerns and legally-created delays in her access to great wealth, all non-existent or false in every regard.

Voorhees paid the defendant, acting as Jorgenson, nearly $650,000.  So strongly did Voorhees believe the lies that Mottaghi told him as Jorgenson, that even after his own family intervened in 2011 to restrict his ability to get access to his own money (information he shared with the defendant), he continued to find ways to give her money.  Even knowing that Voorhees no longer had the ability to control his own finances, Mottaghi solicited $2,500 with the lie that if she didn’t get the money, she would lose future contact with her grandson; a grandson that, of course, she didn’t have. Voorhees took out a loan on his car and gave her the $2,500.  None of the nearly $650,000 has been recovered.

The investigation of this case was conducted by the Portland office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Erik Asphaug.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Fermore Joseph Craig, Jr., 43, of Pendleton, Oregon, pled guilty yesterday before U. S. District Judge Michael W. Mosman to one count of abusive sexual contact and one count of making false statements to the FBI.  The maximum sentence for abusive sexual contact is two years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and a lifetime of supervised release.  Craig’s conviction for abusive sexual contact will require him to register as a sex offender.  The maximum sentence for making false statements to the FBI is five years in prison, a fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release.  Sentencing is scheduled for November 4, 2013.  Craig is currently out of custody and under the supervision of a federal court officer, pending the sentencing hearing.

“Sexual assault is always a heinous crime,” stated U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “But when a tribal police officer, whose very duty is to protect the members of a Tribal Nation, commits such an act, the impact is especially egregious as it violates the trust and safety not only of the victim, but the entire tribal community.”

According to the prosecutor’s statements in court, on May 11, 2013, on the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Craig touched the intimate parts of an adult female.  Craig admitted that he intentionally touched the victim’s intimate parts to arouse and gratify his own sexual desire, and he did so without the victim’s permission.

When the victim subsequently disclosed the sexual abuse, the FBI and Oregon State Police initiated an investigation and interviewed Craig.  On May 13, 2013, during an interview with an FBI special agent and an Oregon State Police trooper, Craig made false statements to the investigators by lying about the sexual contact he had with the victim.

Craig had been employed as a Umatilla Tribal Police Officer for approximately 15 years, but he was not on duty as a police officer at the time the sexual abuse occurred.  After the abuse was reported by the victim, Craig was immediately placed on administrative leave.  Craig ultimately resigned from the Umatilla Tribal Police Department in June, while the investigation was ongoing.

The case was investigated by the FBI’s Pendleton office and the Oregon State Police.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Gabriel prosecuted the case.

PORTLAND, Ore. – A jury in federal court in Portland convicted Miles Julison, 40, of two counts of filing false claims against the United States.  The defendant, a resident of Clackamas and a former real estate investor, was found guilty on August 9th, 2013, after he filed tax returns for the years 2007 and 2008 falsely claiming total refunds due in the amount of more than $1.9 million, despite having paid no federal income taxes in those years.  Sentencing in the case is scheduled for November 20, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon.

“Both collecting revenue to fund the essential functions of the federal government and promptly refunding overpayments by individual taxpayers depends on all taxpayers’ good-faith compliance with the tax laws,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “The administration of the Internal Revenue Code rests on the proposition that every taxpayer will pay the taxes he or she owes, without having to be audited by the IRS.  This office and the IRS will continue to ensure that those taxpayers who do not do so will face the consequences established by law.”           

After a five-day trial and three hours of deliberations, the jury found Miles Julison guilty of filing two false claims for income tax refunds to which he was not entitled.  The evidence at trial established that, in July 2008, Julison falsely claimed on his tax return that he had earned more than half a million dollars in 2007 and that almost all of it had been withheld for taxes.  He then fraudulently claimed he was due a tax refund of $411,773.00.  The IRS issued him a check for that amount two weeks later.  In January 2009, Julison falsely claimed on his tax return that he had earned more than $2.3 million in 2008, and that all but $815 of that total had been withheld for taxes.  He fraudulently claimed a tax refund of more than $1.5 million.  By then, however, Julison was already under criminal investigation, and the refund was never issued.

The evidence at trial established that Julison used the refund he obtained to purchase, among other things, a $60,000 Mercedes-Benz sedan, to pay off his mortgage, and to make payments on a 23-foot ski boat, a Toyota Sequoia SUV, two Kawasaki wave runners, and two Polaris snowmobiles. The trial featured testimony from two other criminal defendants who had collaborated with Julison in filing similar claims for fraudulent refunds.  Those men were expected to plead guilty to charges of filing false claims against the United States in cases pending elsewhere.

This case was investigated by IRS, Criminal Investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Seth D. Uram and Ryan W. Bounds prosecuted the case.

U.S. Attorney's Office commissioned study, conducted by Portland State University, documents wide spread victimization of children in the Portland metro area

PORTLAND, Ore. – Today, U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall and Portland State University released the findings of a research study documenting that at least 469 children were the victims of sex trafficking in the last four years. 

 The Portland State University (PSU) study was sought by the United States Attorney’s Office and conducted in partnership with the Department of Human Services Child Welfare (DHS) and the Sexual Assault Resource Center (SARC), in order to quantify the scope of child sex trafficking in the Portland area and provide data to guide intervention and services for these children. 

“The results of the PSU study are truly shocking,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “The data confirms that we have a devastating epidemic of child sex trafficking within our community – an epidemic that demands action.”

To see a copy of the report, click here.

To see local news coverage, click KGW, KATU, KOIN, Oregonlive

Christopher Carey, PhD, JD of Portland State University and Lena Teplitsky, Portland State MPH Candidate collected quantitative and qualitative data on documented Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) cases in the Portland Metro Area between December 2012 and June 2013.

What we found: 

• At least 469 children were trafficked for sex in the Portland Metro Area in the last four years.  This number represents CSEC victims served by DHS & SARC.  

• The average age at which victims were referred to DHS or SARC was 15.5.  The youngest victim in the system was 8. (See footnote 1) 

• 96% of victims are female, close to 3% are male, and approximately 1% are transgender.

• 40.51% of victims are Caucasian, 27.08% are African American, and 5.12% are Hispanic. (See footnote 2)

• 16.62% have had a baby.

• 50.85% of active CSEC cases served by SARC have a gang connection.

Given the covert nature of CSEC, cases are widely underreported.  As a result, the findings in this report are very conservative.  Collecting standardized data for victims is also difficult due to the highly-sensitive nature of the information, as well as the perceived danger that may result from disclosure.  The data utilized for this study came exclusively from DHS and SARC, as law enforcement data has not been standardized to date.

“By quantifying the problem we are giving policy makers, social service providers, and other stakeholders the data they need to respond to the needs of these children,” noted U.S. Attorney Marshall.  “My office works hand-in-hand with the FBI’s Child Sexual Exploitation Task Force, and other state and local partners, to aggressively prosecute sex trafficking cases.  We currently have twelve open cases against pimps and we recently indicted a john on federal charges.  Still, for every indictment, there are dozens of cases we cannot bring because the child who was trafficked is back on the street – and to solve that problem we need to find and provide safe and secure placements for these kids.”

1 These age figures reflect age at first referral to a support agency, not age at which exploitation began to occur.

2 African Americans make up 5.8% of Multnomah County’s population (2% of the state population).

Linn County Man Admits to being an Armed Career Criminal and Shooting Two Men with a Short Barreled Shotgun during a Drug Deal

EUGENE, Ore. – Karl David Bowman, Jr., 36, of Linn County, Oregon, appeared before U. S. District Court Chief Judge Ann Aiken in Eugene today and pled guilty to being an armed career criminal.  Bowman admitted shooting two men at Cheadle Lake Park on June 16, 2012, with a short-barreled shotgun loaded with birdshot while attempting to rob them of drugs, money, and their car.  The men received serious but non-life threatening injuries.  

After accepting the guilty plea, Chief Judge Aiken sentenced Bowman to 20 years in prison and five years of post-prison supervision following his release.  Chief Judge Aiken sentenced Bowman as an armed career criminal because he possessed the shotgun after being previously convicted of two robberies, a residential burglary, and delivery of methamphetamine.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Bowman and an accomplice met two men near Cheadle Lake in Lebanon, Oregon, to conduct a drug deal.  Bowman carried a short-barreled shotgun as he walked up to the car to conduct the deal and pointed the barrel of the weapon at the driver’s head and toward the passenger.  When Bowman demanded they get out of the car and give him money, drugs and the car keys, the driver tried to accelerate and Bowman shot both men.  The driver was wounded in the neck and shoulder, and the passenger was wounded in the left thigh.

Linn County Sheriff deputies and Lebanon police officers arrested Bowman and his accomplice as they attempted to leave the shooting scene.  Police recovered the abandoned weapon and also found drug paraphernalia and stolen property in Bowman’s vehicle.  At the time of his arrest, Bowman was wanted for identification theft, forgery, theft, illegal possession of weapons, failure to appear, trespassing and traffic crimes in Oregon and Washington.  He had been released from the Oregon Department of Corrections on September 8, 2011.

The defendant’s guilty plea in federal court is the result of a global settlement, whereby the 240 months in federal prison are part of a plea agreement with the U. S. Attorney’s Office, District of Oregon, Clackamas County District Attorney, Linn County District Attorney, King County Prosecuting Attorney, Lewis County Prosecuting Attorney, and Longview City Prosecuting Attorney.  As part of the overall agreement, Bowman agreed that he will pay restitution to his victim in King County, Washington.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearm, Oregon

State Police, Linn County Sheriff’s Office, and the Lebanon Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank R. Papagni, Jr., with the assistance of Linn County Deputy District Attorney Coleen Cerda, prosecuted the case.

EUGENE, Ore. – John Christopher Norton, 40, of Eugene, Oregon, was sentenced on July 29, 2013, to 120 months in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin.

Norton has a prior criminal history, including convictions for bank robbery and delivery of a controlled substance.   In September 2011, he sold heroin within one week after being released from prison.  Over the next two months, he used his stepson, Cory Beatt, to help him conduct multiple heroin deals in Lane County.   In November 2011, a search warrant led to the discovery of heroin at Norton’s residence.   The investigation determined that he possessed a total of 352 grams of heroin.  

“Sentencing is about accountability and hope,” said U.S. District Court Chief Judge Ann Aiken, who presided over sentencing.  “The damage to the community from people dealing drugs, particularly the quantities involved in this case, needs to be underscored.”   The judge characterized as “unacceptable” Norton’s involvement of a family member in his criminal enterprise and reprimanded him for a text message he sent to Beatt after their arrest.   In the text message, Norton urged Beatt not to cooperate with law enforcement.  

Over twenty of Norton’s supporters showed up in court, spoke out on his behalf, and submitted letters to the court telling of Norton’s sixteen-month sobriety from drugs and alcohol, commitment to mentoring troubled youth and excellent employment record.   Judge Aiken credited Norton with extraordinary rehabilitation and sentenced him to 120 months in prison, less than the 151 months recommended by the government.

Norton’s stepson, Cory Beatt, pleaded guilty and was sentenced today.  Judge Aiken credited Beatt with the time he had already served in prison and sentenced him to no additional prison time.   However, as part of his sentence, Beatt must serve up to 120 days in the Lane County Residential Reentry Center and attend Federal Reentry Court.   

This investigation was conducted by the Eugene Police Department, the Lane County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney William “Bud” Fitzgerald.

EUGENE, Ore. – Carel June Cody, 47, of Cottage Grove, was sentenced to 57 months in prison for her theft of Social Security benefits that spanned more than 16 years.  In addition to prison, Cody was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $203,528.   Cody has also agreed to relinquish her federal Thrift Savings Plan retirement fund, worth approximately $36,000, to the government as well as her Cottage Grove residence.

According to Cody’s admissions and court records, Cody’s scheme to defraud began in 1996 when Cody concealed the death of John Arnold, who had been in her care, and buried his body on rural private property.  Each month thereafter when Arnold’s Social Security retirement benefits were electronically deposited to his bank account, Cody forged Arnold’s name on checks payable to herself.  The scheme was discovered when a relative of Cody’s husband, Ernest “Bud” Cook, found a letter written by Cook in 1996 describing the death of Arnold and the theft by Cody.

Calling Cody’s actions “an abuse of trust,” U.S. District Court Chief Judge Ann Aiken stated, “You became a person everyone is afraid of.  We never will know what Mr. Arnold’s final days were like.  I don’t know if you can ever get enough therapy to correct what you did.”

“The relentless team effort of the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office is making a substantial impact on Social Security fraud in Oregon,” said United States Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “These are important cases because when we hold these fraudsters accountable, we recoup stolen funds for the Social Security program and deter others from committing these crimes.”

Cook was sentenced to five years of probation for his receipt of stolen government property and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service for each year he is on supervision.

The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, and the Roseburg Police Department, and was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S.  Attorney Helen L. Cooper, as part of a partnership venture between the Social Security Administration Office of General Counsel and the United States Attorney’s Office.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Martin Glaves Kuna, 66, of Vancouver, Washington, was sentenced yesterday to 14 months in prison by the U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon after pleading guilty today to one count of wire fraud. Kuna falsely advertised and told customers that he was certified to perform lead-based paint inspections and testing in homes where children resided, when in fact, he was not properly qualified or certified by state authorities to do so.

In response to medical studies on the health hazards presented to children by lead-based paint, Congress passed the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act (“Lead Hazard Act”). The Lead Hazard Act authorized the Environmental Protection Agency to develop regulations to ensure, among other things, that individuals engaged in lead-based paint inspections and testing were properly trained and certified. Oregon’s rules for the certification of individuals and firms engaged in lead-based paint inspections and testing prohibit any person or firm to perform lead-based paint inspections and testing in target housing or child-occupied facilities without first receiving appropriate certification.

From May 2008 to September 2012, Kuna advertised his services to conduct lead-based paint inspections and testing, and indicated to individuals via the internet and in person that he was certified to do so. Kuna, however, had not received the required certification and training to inspect and test target housing or child-occupied facilities for lead-based paint despite his representations that he had. Over the course of the scheme, Kuna conducted more than ten (10) such inspections. In one instance where Kuna performed lead-based paint inspections and testing, children resided in the home and Kuna provided the home owner a false negative for the detection of lead. Evidence introduced by the government at sentencing demonstrated that the defendant failed to perform the appropriate tests to determine lead in the home. As a result, some of the children in the home experienced increased lead levels in their blood.

In January 2012, civil EPA investigators intervened in Kuna’s business activities and ordered him to stop lead-based paint inspections and testing. Despite EPA’s order, Defendant Kuna continued to advertise and perform lead-based paint inspections and testing through September 2012. In sentencing Kuna, Judge Simon declared, “Our first duty in society as adults is to protect children.” Following his findings and imposition of 14 months in prison, Judge Simon told the defendant, “The bottom line is, the actions you engaged in put children at risk. Our society just cannot allow that.”

“Protecting children and families is the guiding principle behind our work,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall. “This investigation and prosecution uncovered a significant public health risk. The defendant’s lies caused young children to be exposed to dangerous levels of lead. This office, along with our partners at EPA, will continue to seek criminal penalties for those who break the law and threaten the health of our children.”

“Defendant Kuna, untrained and uncertified to perform the lead-based paint inspection and testing services he sold to unsuspecting families, put children’s health in jeopardy,” said Tyler Amon, Special Agent-in-Charge of EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division in Seattle. “I commend the diligence of the Smith family, who by questioning the services of Mr. Kuna, started a federal investigation and prevented further exposure and injury to their children. This prosecution and conviction speaks for itself – if ‘business-as-usual’ includes exposing children to lead, you will pay the price.”

The investigation was conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency, and the prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle Holman Kerin.

Defendant committed four armed bank robberies

EUGENE, Ore. – Lorinda Marie Goodin, 44, a resident of Lane County, Oregon, was sentenced today by U.S. District Chief Judge Ann Aiken to 22 years and 11 months in prison for committing two armed bank robberies in Multnomah County, two armed bank robberies in Lane County, and to possessing ammunition after having been previously convicted of eight bank robberies.
            Goodin pled guilty on February 20, 2013, to robbing the Bank of the West in Portland on November 8, 2011, the Clackamas County Bank in Gresham on November 14, 2011, and the Pacific Continental Bank in Eugene on August 1 and again on November 25, 2011.  Goodwin wore disguises, brandished what appeared to be a large caliber pistol, and threatened to shoot or kill bank tellers during the robberies. 
            Goodin was arrested on December 7, 2011, by an FBI agent and Springfield police officers after she was seen driving a stolen vehicle in Springfield, Oregon.  She had a large caliber toy pistol in her possession along with various disguises.  During a subsequent court-authorized search of Goodin’s residence, police found numerous rounds of .22 caliber ammunition.
            Goodin also pled guilty in federal court to being a felon in possession of ammunition and agreed to be sentenced as an armed career criminal.  She was convicted after a jury trial in 2003 and sentenced to six years and five months in prison by U.S. District Judge Anna Brown for robbing eight banks in Multnomah, Clackamas and Marion Counties.
            When pleading guilty, Goodin admitted that from August 2011 until her arrest in December 2011, she robbed 25 businesses located in Lane County, Multnomah County, Clackamas County, Wasco County and Douglas County.  When committing her robberies, Goodin carried what appeared to be a large caliber pistol and threatened to shoot employees.  During several of these robberies, Goodin had an accomplice.
            Goodin’s guilty pleas, admissions and agreed sentence recommendation were part of her plea agreement.  As part of her overall agreement, Goodin agreed that she will also plead guilty in Oregon state courts to the multiple robberies she admitted committing, and that she should receive a sentence of up to 18 years in prison for each robbery, to be served concurrently with her federal sentence.
            This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms, the Portland Police Bureau, Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office, Lane County Sheriff’s Office, Eugene Police Department, Roseburg Police Department, The Dalles Police Department, Milwaukie Police Department, Gresham Police Department, and the Springfield Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank R. Papagni, Jr.

EUGENE, Ore. – Juan Jesus Chavez-Salazar, 26, of Lane County, Oregon, was sentenced today by Chief District Judge Ann Aiken to 168 months in prison for conspiracy to possess and distribute methamphetamine.  Upon his release from prison, defendant will be on supervised release for five years.

Defendant and his associates were the target of a long-term federal and state drug investigation.  Beginning in June 2010, law enforcement conducted multiple purchases of methamphetamine from an individual who was acting as a courier for defendant.  A stash house in Springfield, Oregon was identified, and it appeared that the residence was being used to receive and store drugs. After significant investigation and surveillance, law enforcement identified vehicles which regularly appeared at the stash house and they attempted to locate and stop one of the vehicles.

On March 28, 2011, a vehicle driven by Rafael Soto-Mendoza was stopped near Roseburg Oregon.  The vehicle, which had previously been observed at the stash house, was searched.  Two pounds of methamphetamine and a loaded .45 caliber pistol were located in a hidden compartment in the dash.

Two days later, on March 30, 2011, Octavio Mendoza-Diaz and Marlo Gonzalez-Meza arrived at the stash house.  They had not previously been seen during this investigation and law enforcement suspected that they were transporting methamphetamine to the stash house.

On March 31, 2011, Gonzalez-Meza was stopped after he left the stash house.  His vehicle was searched and $20,000 was located in a hidden compartment.  Mendoza-Diaz was stopped in a separate vehicle and a drug dog alerted to his dash board which showed signs of having been removed and replaced.  Chavez-Salazar was driving a third vehicle with Uriel Hernandez-Naranjo as a passenger, and he rapidly drove away from officers when they tried to stop him.  An agent searched the ground in the area where Chavez-Salazar had driven and located methamphetamine.

A search of the stash house revealed 263 grams of methamphetamine, $25,269 in currency, large amounts of wrapping material, a pistol and a shotgun with a sawed-off stock.  The defendants were arrested and charged in federal court.

Several of Chavez-Salazar’s co-defendants have been convicted and sentenced as follows:  Rafael Soto-Mendoza was convicted of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine on May 22, 2012, and sentenced to 87 months in prison; Octavio Mendoza-Diaz was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and sentenced to 60 months in prison; and, Uriel Hernandez-Naranjo was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine on October 16, 2012, and sentenced to 33 months in prison.  Co-defendant Marlo Gonzalez-Meza has pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and is set for sentencing.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Interagency Narcotics Team and the Oregon State Police, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Sweet.

MEDFORD, Ore. —  U.S. District Judge Owen M. Panner today sentenced Norman Bruce Spencer, 59, of Grants Pass, Oregon to 188 months in federal prison for felon in possession of a firearm, followed by five years of supervised release.

In September 2010, the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office responded to a complaint that Spencer, an employee of the Whitehorse Country Store in Grants Pass, had sexually molested an 8-year old girl.  The responding deputy determined that Spencer had multiple aliases and several felony convictions, including three prior convictions for child molestation, and that he had not registered as a sex offender in at least five years.  Spencer was eventually arrested for sexual abuse of a minor and for failure to register as a sex offender.  During the investigation, the deputies also discovered that Spencer possessed a Smith and Wesson .44 caliber revolver and a Norinco 12- gauge shotgun, which defendant kept at the store.  An ATF agent traced the revolver and shotgun back to their original owners, who indicated they had sold the firearms to Spencer.  He was eventually charged and convicted of sex abuse I in Josephine County Circuit Court and was sentenced to life in prison.

In imposing the federal sentence, Judge Panner found that Spencer was an armed career criminal.  Under the federal Armed Career Criminal Act, any person who possesses a firearm or ammunition faces a 15-year mandatory minimum prison sentence if the person has three prior convictions for violent felonies or drug trafficking offenses.  Spencer has previous felony convictions for attempted injury to a child (Idaho 2001); robbery in the second degree (California 2000); lewd acts upon a child under 14-years old (California 1993); aggravated assault in the third degree (Florida 1991), lewd acts upon a child under 14-years old (California 1986), and forgery (California 1982).  In addition, Spencer was also convicted in Josephine County Circuit Court of three counts of felony sex abuse I of a minor, and was sentenced to life without parole.  His federal sentence will run concurrent with the state sentence.

This case was investigated by the Josephine County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.  The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas W. Fong.

The Creator of Malicious Websites is Sentenced to Federal Prison

PORTLAND, Ore. – The creator of websites that facilitated the posting of malicious and defamatory information about people was sentenced to federal prison today for making a threatening communication.  United States District Judge Marco A. Hernandez sentenced Cyrus Andrew Sullivan to 24 months in federal prison for making a threatening communication to a victim of one of Sullivan’s websites.  Sullivan, 30, resided in Portland, Oregon before his arrest in the case. 

The case arose from an investigation involving websites created by Sullivan, which facilitated the posting of malicious and defamatory information about people.  The people about whom such information had been posted were informed they could pay a fee to another website created by Sullivan to have some of the information removed.  Sullivan’s conduct gained so much notoriety that he was the subject of a national television show hosted by Anderson Cooper in March of 2012.

One of Sullivan’s victims, a woman from Portland, Oregon, demanded that Sullivan remove false and malicious information about her on one of the websites.  When Sullivan refused to remove the information unless she paid him $10,000, she fought back.  She aggregated publicly available information about Sullivan and posted it online for other people, including other victims, to see.  On June 4, 2012, when Sullivan realized what the victim had done, he threatened to kill her.  On June 7, 2012, Sullivan was arrested by detectives with the Portland Police Bureau, and has been in custody since that time.  He has prior convictions for criminal mischief in the second degree, assaulting a public safety officer, harassment, and recklessly endangering other persons. 

The defendant was initially charged in Multnomah County Circuit Court with coercion, but that case was dismissed in favor of federal prosecution.  On April 15, 2013, Sullivan pleaded guilty to making a threatening communication.  In pleading guilty, he admitted that he sent an email message via the Internet containing a threat to kill another person, which a reasonable person would take as a serious expression of an intention to inflict bodily harm.  His sentence was enhanced because he made multiple threats.  His sentence was also enhanced because he engaged in obstructive conduct which involved threatening the victim and a judge during a release hearing, and threatening an investigator with the Oregon Consumer Protection Section of the Oregon Department of Justice. 

Upon release from custody, Sullivan will serve a three year period of supervised release.  During his supervised release he must abide by a number of conditions which include mental health counseling, and restricted access to computers and the Internet.

The case was investigated by the Portland Police Bureau, the Oregon Consumer Protection Section of the Oregon Department of Justice, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U. S. Attorney Sean B. Hoar.

EUGENE, Ore. – Today, United States District Judge Anne Aiken sentenced Willard Bryan Wilhelm, 34, of Crook County, Oregon, to two and one-half years in prison and three years of supervision after his release from prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition after being convicted in an Oregon court of the misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.    

Wilhelm pled guilty without a plea agreement to possessing a firearm and ammunition after being convicted in an Oregon court for an “Assault in the Fourth Degree Constituting Domestic Violence.” Wilhelm was warned he could no longer lawfully possess a firearm and ammunition.  On July 19, 2012, Prineville officers were called to Wilhelm’s residence and arrested him for possessing a loaded rifle.  Two female adults and four children were present in the residence when Wilhelm was taken into custody. Witnesses testified at Wilhelm’s sentencing about his history of possessing firearms while intoxicated and his abuse of women and children. 

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the

Prineville Police Department, and was referred to the U.S. Attorney’s office for prosecution by the Crook County Deputy District Attorney Katherine Krauel-Hernberg.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank R. Papagni, Jr..

PORTLAND, Ore.  – U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Mosman today sentenced Albino Miranda Camarillo, 44, of Woodburn, Oregon, to 108 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, felon in possession of firearms, food stamp fraud, and illegal reentry by a deported alien.

Portland FBI, ICE, and ATF agents, in conjunction with the South Metro Gang Task Force, consisting of Hillsboro Police, Woodburn Police, Canby Police, Oregon City Police, and Department of Agriculture Special Agents began investigating the drug trafficking activities of a person referred to as “JoJo.”  Agents learned that Albino Miranda Camarillo was a Mexican citizen who had prior criminal convictions in 1990 and 1994 in Madera County, California, for transporting narcotics for sale, and that he had been deported after serving prison sentences.

An undercover investigation identified a storage locker, several vehicles, and a home in Woodburn after buying drugs from Camarillo.  A financial investigation revealed that Camarillo was collecting food stamp benefits while claiming to be unemployed and the head of a family of five.

A Canby Detective sought seizure warrants to seize cash deposited in bank accounts by defendant totaling $28,504.22, which was later forfeited as unlawfully obtained food stamp benefits, since defendant Camarillo failed to declare his drug trafficking income on his State of Oregon benefit claims.  Upon his arrest, defendant’s premises and were vehicles searched, and his bank accounts seized.  On November 15, 2012, Camarillo pled guilty to four federal crimes and agreed to a sentence of 108 months in federal prison.  At the time of his release he will be deported to Mexico.  Should Camarillo illegally return to the United States after serving his federal prison sentence he will be subject to additional prosecution for immigration offenses.

Assistant U. S. Attorney John Haub prosecuted the case.

PORTLAND, Ore. — U.S. District Court Judge Michael Simon today sentenced Chester Evans Davis, 56, of Oregon City, to 97 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.  In March 2013, a federal jury convicted Davis of five counts of tax evasion, four counts of failure to file a corporate tax return, and one count of obstructing the internal revenue laws.  At the sentencing hearing, the government presented evidence that Davis currently owes over $7 million in state and federal income taxes, and Judge Simon ordered Davis to pay his taxes and to file timely tax returns in the future.

“This defendant took extraordinary measures to hide his money,” said U.S. Attorney S. Amanda Marshall.  “He refused to pay his fair share of taxes, to the detriment of all taxpayers, but now he will be repaying his debt to society for a very long time.”

“There are a number of strategies we often see people use when they try to get away with tax evasion,” said Kenneth J. Hines, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in the Pacific Northwest. “Mr. Davis tried a lot of them.  He filed frivolous lawsuits, false documents with the IRS, and false and harassing claims against IRS personnel.  He used alternative ‘banks’ to conceal his finances and nominees to disguise his business activities.  These strategies all have one thing in common - they result in criminal conviction.”

Davis is the former owner and president of ESA International (formerly ESA NW, Inc.), a Gladstone engineering firm specializing in power system software.  Davis’ company earned millions of dollars in annual revenue, including revenue from federal government agencies such as the U.S. Air Force, the Army Corps of Engineers, and Bonneville Power Administration.  Davis transferred money from his company to various shell corporations and a warehouse bank, and then used the money to purchase more than $5 million in gold bars and coins.   In response to the IRS audit, Davis sought to harass IRS employees, by filing arrest warrants against them, by filing liens, and by filing bogus Forms 1099-OID representing that he had paid income to IRS employees, as well as others.

Special Agents with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigation seized over $1 million of Davis’ gold while executing search warrants at Davis’ residence and business, but the unaccounted-for gold is worth more than $7 million. While executing search warrants, IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agents found and seized over $1 million of Davis’ gold and approximately $115,000 in cash, much of which Davis hid in Bazooka tubes in his and a family member's home.  In Davis' home, agents also found thirty-nine firearms, body armor, tactical gear, sniper training materials, survival manuals, and anti-government literature.

This case stemmed from an investigation by Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Craig Gabriel and Stacie Beckerman.

PORTLAND, Ore. – A jury in federal court in Portland today convicted three former owner/operators of Summit Accommodators, Inc., of Bend, of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering in connection with a 10-year fraud scheme.  The defendants used $75 million of client funds for undisclosed personal investments in real estate, investments in businesses in the Bend area, and loans to business associates and family members.  Sentencing in the case is scheduled for October 23, 2013, before U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown.

“Attorneys, certified public accountants and business executives who, motivated by greed, lie to clients to gain use of their money for personal purposes are especially deserving of prosecution and punishment,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “This office and our federal and state partners will do whatever it takes to bring dishonest professionals to justice.”    

After three weeks of trial and two and one-half days of deliberations the jury found CPA Mark A. Neuman and Attorney Lane D. Lyons, both of Bend, and Timothy D. Larkin, of Redmond, guilty of conspiring to defraud the clients of their former business, Summit Accommodators, Inc., by misrepresenting how they would hold and use client funds.  Several thousand clients entrusted them with more than $1 billion from 1999 to 2008, when the business closed and filed for bankruptcy.  Brian Stevens, another former owner/operator of Summit, previously pleaded guilty to identical charges and testified against his former partners.

Neuman and Stevens created Summit in 1991 to help customers take advantage of lawful federal income tax deferral transactions.  In a typical transaction, a customer would sell income producing property, allow Summit to hold the proceeds of the sale, then buy another income producing property within 180 days.  Federal income tax laws then allowed the customer to defer paying taxes on the profits from sale of the first property.   Summit eventually opened affiliate offices in Texas, Washington, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, and Lake Oswego, Oregon.

In 2002, Neuman and Stevens hired Larkin as Summit’s Chief Operating Officer.  In 2005, Neuman and Stevens hired Lyons as Summit’s in-house counsel.  In 2006, Larkin and Lyons became equal partners in Summit with Neuman and Stevens.

The trial evidence showed that although Neuman and Stevens began using their clients’ exchange funds for personal investments before 1999, they promised their clients their exchange funds would remain in Summit bank accounts and would only be used to complete their tax deferral exchanges.  Neuman was responsible for creating Summit marketing brochures and Summit’s website.  Both falsely promised Summit would maintain client funds in bank accounts or in government securities.

From 2004 through October 2008, Summit held between $49 million and $109 million of its customers’ money in a typical month.  The defendants routinely transferred large amounts of client money to Inland Capital Corp., another company they owned and controlled.   Through Inland, the conspirators used client funds for over 100 real estate projects in Central Oregon in which one or more of them had direct personal interests.

The co-conspirators hid the fraud scheme by concealing from most of Summit’s employees and from most of the owner-operators of Summit’s branch offices that the conspirators were using Summit customer money to invest in real estate and for loans to themselves and others.  In February 2007, when Summit’s clients and branch owner-operators began to express concern about the safety of Summit client money, the conspirators lied by saying that all Summit client money was deposited and maintained in financial institutions or invested in highly-secured short term notes.  For 10 years, the conspirators intentionally concealed from clients that they used large amounts of client money to enrich themselves.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; IRS, Criminal Investigation; the United States Postal Inspection Service; and the Oregon Division of Finance and Corporate Securities.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Seth D. Uram and Donna Maddux handled the prosecution of the case.

EUGENE, OREGON—  On January 8, 2013, Tamara Diane Brown, 41, of Eugene, Oregon, pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud in U.S. District Court in Eugene, admitting her involvement in a scheme to sell illegally obtained cellphones through the internet.  Today she was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison and ordered to pay restitution to the victim.

Brown admitted that while working as an employee of The Pape Group, Inc. in Eugene, she used her corporate authority to order large quantities of Sprint cellphones, which she then diverted and had delivered to her home and the home of her friend.  Brown sold the devices through eBay.  The scheme to defraud The Pape Group, Inc. and Sprint took place between February 2010 and October 2011.  Brown admitted that during the scheme, she improperly ordered 5,107 cellphones and obtained more than $305,000 from selling them.  She deposited the ill-gotten gains into her personal bank account and spent the proceeds by making a down payment on a residence and for vehicles, trips to Hawaii and Las Vegas, clothes and other personal expenses. The Pape Group, Inc. and Sprint were unaware of the fraud during the time it was occurring.  Brown was terminated once The Pape Group, Inc. discovered her scheme.

Chief United States District Judge Ann Aiken presided over the case ordered Brown to serve 21 months in federal prison.  After her prison sentence Brown must serve three years of supervised release.  Brown was also ordered to forfeit the $305,000 she made from the fraud, and pay full restitution to the Pape Group, Inc.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant U. S. Attorneys Chris Cardani and Amy Potter.

PORTLAND, Ore. —  A federal grand jury in Portland, OR, has indicted George Allen Mason, Jr., 23, and his wife, Saraya Sophia Lisa Gardner, also 23, on charges related to a the assault of a 26-year old gay man who was walking his pink-dyed poodle with his boyfriend on the streets of Hillsboro, a Portland suburb, which occurred because of animus against the victim’s sexual orientation.

Mason is charged with violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act that was enacted in October 2009.  The indictment alleges that Mason struck the victim with a metal tool because of the victim’s actual or perceived sexual orientation, thereby causing bodily injury to the victim. 

Gardner is charged with one count of obstruction of justice for knowingly and intentionally misleading Hillsboro Police Department (HPD) officers in statements she provided in connection with the investigation of Mason.  The indictment alleges that Gardner lied about Mason’s whereabouts at the time HPD officers were searching for him and that she further misled HPD officers when she repeatedly changed her story as to the weapon that Mason employed to strike the victim.

Mason faces a statutory maximum penalty of ten years in prison.  Gardner faces a statutory maximum penalty of twenty years in prison.  Both defendants will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at the Mark Hatfield Federal Courthouse at a time to be set in the near future. 

This case is being investigated by the Portland Division of the FBI in cooperation with HPD.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hannah Horsley for the District of Oregon and Trial Attorney Fara Gold of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice.

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

Rogue River Man with Prior Conviction for Sex Crime, Sentenced for Transporting Two Minor Girls to California and Committing Sexual Assault

MEDFORD, Ore. – Today, Senior U.S. District Judge Owen M. Panner sentenced James Robert Powell, 50, of Rogue River, Oregon, to 25 years in federal prison for crimes relating to his sexual assault of two minors.

After receiving allegations that Powell had molested minors, law enforcement officials learned that Powell used his friendship with a woman to obtain her permission in March 2012 to take her two daughters, ages 15 and 13, from Rogue River, Oregon to Brookings, Oregon, purportedly to help Powell sell merchandise at a local fair.  The investigation disclosed that Powell instead took the girls to a beach house he had rented in Smith River, California. Once there, Powell provided alcohol to the minors, got them drunk, and sexually abused both of them over a two day period.  Powell also secretly recorded the girls while they were naked.  He instructed the girls that upon their return, to lie to their mother about where they had been over the weekend.

On June 29, 2012, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Powell, charging him with various offenses relating to his sexual assault of the minors. Powell pleaded guilty on January 22, 2013 to transportation with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity with a minor, and using a minor to produce a visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct.  Powell has been in federal custody since he was arrested in April 2012.

Powell has a prior conviction in 1994 for assault with intent to commit rape and verbal threats to kill (U.S. Department of the Army, Fort Leavenworth, KS).  Powell served five years in a military prison and received a General Court Martial. 

Today, Senior U.S. District Judge Owen Panner sentenced Powell to serve 25 years in federal prison, and ordered that Powell be on supervised release for the rest of his life.    U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall applauded Judge Panner’s sentence, commenting that, “This 25-year sentence sends a clear message to other sex offenders like Powell. If you sexually abuse a child, we will find you, we will prosecute you, and you will be locked up for a very long time.  We will continue to do everything in our power to remove these predators from society and prevent them from victimizing others.”

This case was investigated by the FBI, Grants Pass Police Department, and Southern Oregon High-Tech Crimes Task Force, and was prosecuted by Assistant U. S. Attorney Judith Harper.

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

EUGENE, Ore. – On June 18, 2013, Klamath Falls resident Kevin Rowdy Hurst, 45, was sentenced by U.S. District Chief Judge Ann Aiken to 120 months in federal prison for unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.  Upon his release from prison, Hurst will be on supervised release for three years. 

On August 13, 2011, a Klamath County Sheriff’s Officer encountered Hurst biking the streets of Klamath Falls while carrying a loaded AR-15.  When confronted, Hurst threw the rifle over a fence and eluded officers.  Defendant has multiple felony convictions and a lengthy criminal history.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Klamath County Sheriff’s Office, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan J. Lichvarcik.

Defendant Bilked Customers who Sought Venture Capital Funding

PORTLAND, Ore. – Hui “Judy” Wang, 46, of Laguna Niguel, California, was sentenced today to 41 months in prison by U.S. District Court Judge Ancer L. Haggerty following her guilty plea to one count of wire fraud related to an advance fee scheme.  Wang was also ordered to pay restitution to the victims in the full amount of $2 million.

“People who lie to cheat others out of their hard earned money in fraud schemes such as this will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  Marshall thanked the Internal Revenue Service for their investigative efforts.

In 2007 a Vancouver business owner sought venture capital for his technology-based start-up company.   He found Wang and her business, Grand Capital Financial, through her internet website, advertising the business as a real estate investment trust and financial lender.  He approached Wang for her assistance in finding venture capital for his company.  Wang promised him that she could secure up to $200 million for his business, but told the victim that he first had to deposit $2 million into her account for a period of 30 days in order to prove to the potential financiers that the business was operational and solvent.  If the funding was secured, the deposit would be considered as an advance on her fee.  Wang’s contract provided that she would return the $2 million deposit if she could not secure the promised funding within 30 days.

Over the following few months, the victim contacted potential lenders, and eventually a Portland resident agreed to provide a short-term loan of $2 million to the victim so he could pursue additional venture capital through Wang.  The money was thereafter wired from Oregon to California.

As soon as the money was deposited into Wang’s account, she began to spend it.  She paid off two personal mortgage loans, purchased a residence in Texas, bought two vehicles, and paid numerous personal expenses.  When the 30-day window ended and no venture capital was secured, the victim asked for his money back consistent with the contract.  Wang repeatedly lied, stating that funding was still being worked out, that she still had all the money, and would return it if she couldn’t secure the funding in the short term.  No venture funding ever materialized.  All subsequent efforts to recover the money have failed, and the victims have lost the entire advance fee given to Wang.

“Trust in the people you do business with is such an essential part of our economy, and Ms. Wang took advantage of her victim’s trust in her to satisfy her own greed,” said Kenneth J. Hines, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in the Pacific Northwest. “The 41‑month prison sentence handed down today in this case is a clear message to fraudsters that the IRS will bring the skills of its financial investigators to the task of following the money and holding the guilty accountable.”

This investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Erik Asphaug.

Indictment Charges Husband and Wife with Obtaining Firearm for Charged Federal Defendant David Joseph Pedersen and Being Accessories After the Fact for Pederson and Co-Defendant Holly Ann Grigsby

PORTLAND, Ore. -   A federal indictment was unsealed today charging Corey Wyatt, 28, and his wife, Kimberly Scott Wyatt, 32, of Springfield and Monroe, Oregon with conspiracy to obtain and transfer a firearm to convicted felon David Joseph Pedersen a/k/a Joey Pedersen who was prohibited from possessing a firearm, the straw purchase and transfer of that firearm, being accessories after the fact to kidnapping resulting in death, using a firearm in a crime of violence that caused death, and transportation of a stolen vehicle by assisting David Joseph Pedersen and Holly Ann Grigsby, and misprision of a felony. 

Kimberly Scott Wyatt appeared before U.S.Magistrate Dennis J. Hubel for arraignment and entered a plea of not guilty to all counts of the indictment.  She was detained in custody pending further review, and a trial date of August 20, 2013 was set.  Defendant Corey Wyatt is currently in custody on unrelated state charges, and an arraignment before a U.S. Magistrate will be scheduled on a later date.      

The attached indictment charges an alleged conspiracy that began on or about July 4, 2011, and charges the Wyatts with making a false statement to deceive a licensed firearms dealer that Kimberly Scott Wyatt was the actual purchaser of a 9mm luger pistol when, in fact, they purchased the firearm for David Joseph Pedersen who was a convicted felon who was prohibited from possessing a firearm.  David Joseph Pedersen and Holly Ann Grigsby are currently pending federal charges that stem from an alleged 10-day crime spree that spanned from Everett, Washington to Eureka, California, and included four murders and the possession of that firearm and others. 

The attached indictment also charges both Corey Wyatt and Kimberly Scott Wyatt with being accessories after the fact to Pedersen and Grigsby between September 27 and 28, 2011, in order to hinder and prevent their apprehension, knowing that Pedersen and Grigsby had committed crimes including kidnapping resulting in death, using a firearm in a crime of violence that caused death, and transporting a stolen vehicle.  Pedersen and Grigsby are charged in a separate federal indictment with the murder, kidnapping and robbery of Pedersen’s father, David Jones “Red” Pedersen, of Everett, Washington, as well as using a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence that resulted in death, and the interstate transportation of Red Pedersen’s stolen vehicle from Washington to Oregon between September 26 and 27, 2011.

If convicted, the defendants face maximum penalties for the charges ranging from three to 15 years, and up to a $250,000 fine.

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

These charges stem from an investigation led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Oregon State Police, the Everett, Washington Police Department and the Eureka, California Police Department, with assistance from the Oregon Department of Corrections, Lincoln County Sheriff's Office, Lincoln County Major Crimes Team, Linn County Sheriff's Office, Benton County Sheriff's Office, Corvallis Police Department, Salem Police Department, Keizer Police Department, California Highway Patrol, Yuba County, California Sheriff's Office, Portland Police Bureau, United States Marshals Service, Tillamook County Sheriff's Office, Philomath Police Department, Lebanon Police Department, Stayton Police Department, Snohomish County Sheriff's Office, and the Oregon Department of Justice.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jane Shoemaker and Hannah Horsley are handling the prosecution of the case.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Michael Thomas Ragnone, 37, of Portland, Oregon, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Michael W. Mosman to 210 months (17.5 years) in prison and five years of supervised release, for his leadership role in a conspiracy responsible for distributing significant quantities of methamphetamine in the Portland metropolitan area.

“This 17-year sentence marks the culmination of an efficient investigation by the Clackamas County Interagency Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and an effective federal prosecution targeting a drug distribution network responsible for introducing significant quantities of methamphetamine into our community,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “Thanks to the hard work of our law enforcement partners, another drug dealer is off the streets.” 

In March 2011, Clackamas County Interagency Task Force (CCITF) officers successfully introduced an undercover officer to an upper-mid level drug dealer known to them as “Russian John.”   Agents identified “Russian John” as Michael Thomas Ragnone, the owner of R&M Motors car lot at 809 North Rosa Parks Way.  Between April and September 2011, agents conducted several controlled buys of methamphetamine from Ragnone and his drug couriers, in multiple ounce quantities.  Surveillance officers observed Ragnone driving a BMW M5, Mercedes E320, and Honda CRV.  On September 7, 2011, agents arrested Ragnone and executed a search warrant at his car lot.  They seized 15 firearms, over four pounds of methamphetamine, digital scales, and piles of stolen property including boat motors, bicycles, credit cards, and hundreds of catalytic converters.

At the defendant’s initial appearance in federal court, the magistrate judge released defendant to pretrial supervision, over the government’s objection.  During his time on pretrial supervision, defendant continued to engage in criminal conduct by sending a methamphetamine-laced letter to his incarcerated girlfriend, using stolen credit cards, and diversifying his drug distribution business to include both heroin and methamphetamine.  He was taken back into custody in October 2012.  As a result of his pretrial misconduct, defendant lost 7 years’ worth of sentencing credit for “acceptance of responsibility.”  On June 6, 2013, Judge Mosman sentenced Ragnone to 210 months in prison and imposed a money judgment of $500,000.  Judge Mosman found that aggravating factors justified the lengthy prison term, including the firearms, defendant’s leadership role, and defendant’s post-indictment misconduct in the community while pending trial. 

Ragnone was the final defendant to be sentenced in the overall CCITF investigation in which Ragnone’s co-conspirators in related cases received federal prison sentences of 70 months, 75 months, 87 months, 120 months, and 262 months.

This case was investigated by Clackamas County Interagency Task Force and the DEA.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Leah K. Bolstad and Special Assistant United States Attorney Steven T. Mygrant.

EUGENE, Ore. – Jeremie Wesley Skordahl, 33, of Eugene, Oregon, was sentenced today by Chief District Court Judge Ann Aiken to 196 months in prison for bank robbery.  Upon his release from prison, Skordahl will be on supervised release for three years.  

On November 12, 2012, Skordahl entered the Coburg Road branch of U.S. Bank in Eugene and handed the teller a note, which demanded money.  He stated he was armed and would not hesitate shooting as many people as possible.  Skordahl obtained $2,630 and fled the bank.  Later the same day, Skordahl was located in a nearby residential area after a resident reported seeing Skordahl running through neighboring backyards.  Skordahl was arrested and the money he stole was found on his person.

Skordahl's criminal history qualified him as a career offender under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, resulting in an increased sentence.  Additionally, as part of his plea agreement, Skordahl agreed to serve a longer federal sentence in order to receive a concurrent sentence in a Lane County Circuit Court assault case. 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Eugene Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Sweet.

EUGENE, Ore. – Today FBI Agents arrested Jenelle Pinkston, age 45, for allegedly calling in bomb threats to Albany, Oregon, elementary schools in April and May of this year. Pinkston faces one count of threatened use of a destructive device.  If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  Pinkston made her initial appearance before Magistrate Judge Thomas M. Coffin on Wednesday, and he ordered Pinkston held pending further court proceedings.

According to the criminal complaint, investigators allege that Pinkston made one call on April 16, 2013, to Waverly Elementary School, threatening that a bomb would explode in 10 minutes. The complaint further alleges that Pinkston made two calls on May 23, 2013: another call to Waverly Elementary School and one to Periwinkle Elementary School. In all cases, administrators evacuated the schools, but no devices were ever found. Albany Police Department and Albany Fire Department responded to all incidents and expended significant resources in determining that the schools were safe for the students to return. Albany Police Department initially determined the phone that was used in the threats, traced that phone’s ownership and use, and arrested Pinkston on local charges of coercion, disorderly conduct, and tampering with evidence.

Assistant United States Attorney William Fitzgerald is the federal prosecutor overseeing this case.

A criminal complaint is only an accusation of a crime, and all defendants should be presumed innocent until proven guilty.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Rashad Q. Sanders, 28 was sentenced to 194 months in federal prison yesterday by U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez, after pleading guilty to three counts of a superseding indictment charging him with the sex trafficking and transportation of three minors. Sanders was also sentenced to 10 years of supervised release and will have to register as a sex offender. 

The investigation began in September of 2008 when Sanders made contact with two minors aged 16 and 17 via the internet.  He ultimately convinced both of them to leave the State of Minnesota and travel to Portland, Oregon to work for him as prostitutes.  Sanders purchased Greyhound Bus tickets for the minors and picked them up at the bus station when they arrived in Portland.  Thereafter, Sanders took the girls to a local hotel and provided one of the minors with a false identification card that showed her to be over 18.  He gave her instructions to register a room under the false name.  The same day he helped the minors obtain cellular phones.  Later in the evening he used his laptop computer to post pictures of the minors in commercial sex advertisements online via Craigslist.com. Thereafter, the victims started receiving calls from paying customers and engaged in sex acts for money.  The girls complied with Sanders instructions to give him all the money they made from prostitution.  After a short period of time, the girls realized they didn’t want to work for Sanders anymore and tried to leave.  At that time, Sanders became angry and punched one of the girls in the head, knocking her down the hotel stairs.  The other minor ran from the hotel, entered a stranger’s home, and asked if they would call 911.  By the time the police arrived, Sanders had fled the area, leaving his laptop and other possessions. 

On May 4, 2011, Sanders was arrested on a state charge of compelling prostitution at the Palms Hotel in Portland, Oregon.  At the time,“C.C.”, a 15 year old, was a passenger in the front seat of his car.  On that date, the police were called by staff at the Palms Hotel because Sanders would not pay for double occupancy on a room that he rented.  When they contacted CC she said that Sanders was her pimp and brought her to the hotel for a prostitution date.  She said that Sanders had drugged her and forced her to work as a prostitute for him.  Inside Sanders’ car, the police found lingerie, condoms, and a cell phone that was used to receive calls from “C.C.” customers.  “C.C.” was taken to a local hospital and interviewed.  In the days and months that followed, “C.C.” began to tell a consistent story about how she met Sanders about a year earlier when she was 14 year old.  Also, about how Sanders provided and injected her with methamphetamine.  Additionally, she shared over time he convinced her to work for him as a prostitute beginning about December of 2010.

At the sentencing hearing, Sanders did not express any remorse for the minors and told Federal District Court Judge Hernandez that these minors are not victims and blamed them for his current situation.

This case was investigated by the Portland Police Bureau, FBI, and the FBI Child Exploitation Task Force.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kemp Strickland.

Jury Verdict Returned Thursday June 27, 2013

PORTLAND, Ore. – A federal jury in Portland returned verdicts of guilty Thursday in the trial of husband and wife Hossein Lahiji, age 50, and Najmeh Vahid Dasterjerdi a.k.a. Najmeh Lahiji, age 33, both of McAllen, Texas.  Hossein Lahiji is a physician specializing in urology and Najmeh Vahid is an attorney, both practicing in Texas.  The counts of conviction included conspiracy to defraud the United States which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 and conspiracy to engage in money laundering which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000.  The indictment alleged that defendants conspired to impede and impair the functions of the Internal Revenue Service in the collection of income taxes and the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Treasury Department in the enforcement of the Presidential Embargo against Iran.  The jury also returned a verdict of forfeiture to the United States of $600,000 that was involved in the money laundering offense. 

Trial evidence showed that defendants provided funds to a Portland charity, the Child Foundation, between 1998 and 2006.  The Child Foundation, in turn, gave the defendants charitable donation receipts and transferred the funds to Iran.  Defendants claimed charitable deductions from their income taxes for these payments.  Some of the funds were used to purchase a building in Tehran in the name of Hossein Lahiji’s sister.  Additional funds were used to invest in an interest-bearing account in an Iranian bank.  Yet additional funds were committed to be spent at the discretion of an Iranian Ayatollah.  Some of the payments were backdated to facilitate claims of charitable donations for a year prior to the year of actual payment.  Many of the uses of the funds violated the Presidential embargo against Iran, instituted in 1995.  Co-conspirators Child Foundation and Mehrdad Yasrebi were separately prosecuted and sentenced in March 2012.  Child Foundation has since completely reorganized and continues to operate under the supervision of U.S. Probation officers.

Judge Garr M. King presided over the trial, which began on June 11, 2013.  He scheduled sentencing for November 19, 2013 at 10:00 a.m.  Defendants remain on release pending sentencing.  Defendants are charged in a separate federal indictment in the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, health care fraud, conspiracy to violate the Iranian Embargo, and failure to file a report of foreign bank and financial accounts.  Trial in the Houston case is currently scheduled for October of 2013.

These cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations Division, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Charles Gorder and David Atkinson.

Oregon Medical Marijuana Program Cloaks Illegal Marijuana Sales

MEDFORD, Ore. -  On Monday, June 3, 2013, Federal District Judge Owen M. Panner sentenced Robert Hisamoto, age 42, of Ashland, Oregon, to 48 months in federal prison for Conspiracy to Manufacture and Distribute Marijuana.  Hisamoto owns and operates Samurai Fighting Arts in Medford, Oregon. 

In August 2011, U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency aerial surveillance identified 198 large marijuana plants growing at 6530 Tolo Road, Central Point, Oregon.  This property was owned by Robert Hisamoto and was listed as an Oregon Medical Marijuana Program (OMMP) grow site.  On October 20, 2011, DEA agents executed a search warrant at the Tolo Road property.  Charlie and Madeline Reader resided at the property with their adult children.  All but sixteen marijuana plants had been harvested.  A large barn contained 48 drying racks used to process marijuana.  The garage contained an indoor marijuana grow operation with 90 marijuana plants under grow lights, and a “Trim Pro” (Twister) hi-speed marijuana processing machine.

Agents simultaneously executed a search warrant at Hisamoto’s residence, 704 Elkader Street, Ashland, Oregon.  The garage contained 98 pounds of trimmed marijuana bud on drying racks, 117 pounds of packaged marijuana bud, and 17 pounds of marijuana shake, totaling 233 pounds.  Hisamoto was registered as an OMMP caregiver for 30 patients, which allowed him to possess a maximum of 45 pounds of marijuana.  Several documents contained notations of marijuana weights and prices per pound sold, with sales totals ranging from $18,000 to $29,000.  Agents also discovered that Hisamoto maintained an additional marijuana grow site in Butte Falls.  Agents later learned from witness interviews that Hisamoto additionally had more than 100 pounds of processed marijuana concealed in a storage unit, which Hisamoto later sold.

Interviews of listed OMMP growers and patients revealed that Hisamoto recruited OMMP growers and patients to justify growing large quantities of marijuana for sale.  Most of the “growers” were not involved in the operation, and many of the “patients’ either did not use marijuana or never received marijuana from Hisamoto.   Further investigation revealed that Hisamoto sold the marijuana to buyers from California.  Hisamoto recruited co-defendants Charlie and Madeline Reader to manage the Tolo Road marijuana grow site.  Madeline Reader also signed up OMMP patients for Hisamoto and paid their fees with money provided by Hisamoto.  Hisamoto also recruited several others to guard the Tolo Road grow site and assist in trimming marijuana. 

Co-defendants Charles Reader and Madeline Reader were previously sentenced to 33 months and 18 months prison respectively for their role in Hisamoto’s operation.  Madeline Reader had a previous felony conviction for delivery of methamphetamine.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration with assistance from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Medford Police Department, Ashland Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Forest Service, and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas W. Fong.

Report to Congress Shows Increased Federal Prosecutions on Oregon’s Indian Reservations

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Department of Justice released today a report to Congress entitled Indian Country Investigations and Prosecutions that provides a range of statistics related to federal law enforcement operations in Indian Country in 2011 and 2012.  The report, which is based on data compiled by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the FBI, shows a 54 percent increase in Indian Country criminal prosecutions nationally since Fiscal Year 2009.

“Across the country, U.S. Attorneys have been focused on fighting crime in Indian Country and reinforcing the bond between federal and tribal law enforcement, which also strengthens the faith that people have in their criminal justice system,” said Attorney General Eric Holder.  “This report on federal law enforcement efforts in Indian Country is beginning to show the fruits of this labor with an increase in Indian Country cases prosecuted in federal courts over the past three years, but we have more work to do.   The department will continue in its commitment to working with our tribal partners to build safe, sustainable, and healthy communities in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.”

“While the numbers are gratifying, they are only a small part of the story. What we are most proud of is the way tribal leaders and Justice Officials have worked together in recent years to find and implement responses to violent crime in Indian Country,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall. “From the passage of the Tribal Law and Order Act (TLOA); the Violence Against Women Act; and inter-agency collaboration in both prevention and enforcement, we have come a long way. Here in Oregon, I am especially proud of the way our office has worked to not only fight crime, but also to provide technical expertise, training, consultation, and prosecution resources to assist tribes in exercising their law enforcement, sentencing, and jurisdictional authority. We have a proud tradition of honoring our trust responsibility to Oregon Tribes. From the country’s first tribal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program at Warm Springs to the nation’s first tribal court sentencing to the Bureau of Prisons under the provisions of the TLOA by the Umatilla Tribe, our partnerships with tribes have paved the way for significant improvements to public safety in Indian Country. I am confident that we will continue to blaze new trails to ensure that reservations in Oregon are safe places for children and families.”

In Oregon, the U.S. Attorney’s Office has the responsibility to prosecute major crimes on the Burns-Paiute Indian Reservation, the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, and the Umatilla Indian Reservation.  The report shows that in 2011, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon prosecuted 31 Indian Country cases and declined 17 cases, for a declination rate of 35%.  In 2012, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon prosecuted 50 Indian Country cases and declined 9 cases, for a declination rate of 15%.  Cases were declined for numerous reasons, such as the suspect being prosecuted in tribal court instead of federal court, or the lack of sufficient evidence to proceed with a federal prosecution.

Major crimes in Indian Country are investigated jointly by tribal law enforcement officers and FBI agents.  The number of Indian Country prosecutions in Oregon has increased significantly in the past two years due to partnerships between tribal and federal law enforcement officers.  For example, in Warm Springs, a Multi-Disciplinary Team of social workers, tribal prosecutors, tribal detectives, FBI agents, and federal prosecutors meet monthly to review and evaluate ongoing child abuse investigations.  Additionally, a lawyer from the Umatilla Indian Reservation was commissioned last year as a Special Assistant United States Attorney to prosecute federal crimes and help coordinate joint tribal-federal investigations of major crimes.  Additionally, U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall travels annually to consult with leaders from all nine of Oregon’s Tribal Nations to listen to their concerns about public safety in their communities.  Ms. Marshall also serves on the Attorney General’s Native American Advisory Committee and chairs the Juvenile Justice in Indian Country Working Group. 

Read the entire report at http://www.justice.gov/tribal/tloa-report-cy-2011-2012.pdf

Read more about the Justice Department’s efforts to increase public safety in Indian County at http://www.justice.gov/tribal/accomplishments.html

Oregon Medical Marijuana Program Used as a Cover to Grow Marijuana For Sale.

MEDFORD, Ore. - On Tuesday, May 28, 2013, Senior U. S. District Judge Owen M. Panner sentenced Brian Wayne Simmons, 40, of Medford, Oregon, to 15 years in federal prison for conspiracy, and manufacturing and distributing marijuana. 

Simmons owned and operated Brian’s Green Thumb Farm on East Gregory Road in Central Point, Oregon, purporting to grow organic vegetables.  U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents executed a search warrant on Simmon’s farm in October 2011, seizing 456 large marijuana plants.  Agents seized an additional 64 large marijuana plants at a second grow site on Dark Hollow Road in Medford.  The plants ranged from approximately 5-8 feet tall and produced upwards of 10 pounds of marijuana per plant.  Agents also seized thousands of pounds of harvested marijuana being processed at both locations (1,600 pounds dry weight).  Simmons had previously registered over 20 persons as “growers” at his marijuana sites, creating the appearance that he was complying with the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act.  In fact, evidence established that many of the growers were recruited in name only and took no part in the grow operation.  Simmons also recruited persons to tend the marijuana plants for a percentage of the profit, and paid others to trim the marijuana.  The investigation revealed that Simmons had been growing and selling marijuana since at least 2009, with documented sales of over $740,000 for the 2009 and 2010 grow seasons.  Based on the seized evidence, Simmons had roughly quadrupled the size of his operation by 2011.

Simmons was convicted by a twelve person jury after a trial in Medford, Oregon in December 2012.  A co-defendant, Michael Grantski, was acquitted.  Another co-defendant, Michael Peru, pleaded guilty, and is pending sentencing.

“This case represents another gross abuse of the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program (OMMP).  Under state law, OMMP attempts to provide a mechanism to enable people who suffer from one of several enumerated medical conditions to obtain medicinal marijuana.  Unfortunately, criminals like Mr. Simmons hide behind the façade of OMMP in order to sell their illicit product to drug users and drug dealers for profit,” stated  U. S. Attorney Amanda S. Marshall.  “My office will continue to indict others who violate both state and federal law by producing and selling large quantities of marijuana for profit.  We will also take the assets that are used to facilitate the illegal activity and the resulting proceeds in order to take the profit out of this crime.”

This case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Medford Police Department, Ashland Police Department, U.S. Marshals Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Forest Service, and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas W. Fong.

Portland, Ore. - An inmate of the Oregon State Penitentiary, Andrew Laud Barnett, 32, today received an additional 80-month federal sentence for a series of crimes against law enforcement personnel occurring from 2008 through 2012.  U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez ordered that 63 months be served consecutively to the prison term Barnett is currently serving in Oregon state custody.

In January 2008, while serving earlier state sentences for assaulting sheriffs’ deputies in Washington and Marion counties, Barnett mailed a threatening letter to Washington County Sheriff Rob Gordon and three of his deputies.  The letter was in retaliation for Barnett’s earlier assault prosecution and contained explicit threats of sexual assault, injury and death against the officers.

In August 2011, while awaiting federal court proceedings in the 2008 case, Barnett assaulted a deputy sheriff at the Multnomah County Detention Center.  Barnett threw a container of human urine and feces in the face of the deputy.

In April 2012, while awaiting trial in both the 2008 and 2011 cases, Barnett mailed a threatening letter addressed to his federal prosecutor, Assistant United States Attorney Stephen F. Peifer.  The envelope contained a white powder that Barnett represented was anthrax.  A receptionist at the U.S. Attorney’s Office opened the letter in the course of her duties and inhaled the powder.  Hazardous materials personnel and paramedics came to the U.S. Courthouse to investigate and care for the victim.  The substance was later determined to be a penicillin-based antibiotic that had been ground into a powder.

In addition to the 2007 assaults against the deputies, Barnett has prior felony convictions for third-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and vehicle theft in 2000, delivery of a controlled substance in 2004, and assault of a corrections officer in 2004.

Barnett currently has a projected release date of May 2015 after serving his sentence on conviction of the state cases.  Therefore, the 63-month portion of his new federal sentences will not commence until his state sentences end.

The federal cases were investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshal’s Service, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.

PORTLAND, Ore.  – U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez today sentenced Darrell Michael Ostlund, 33, of Canby, Oregon, to 140 months in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.  The sentencing follows Ostlund’s guilty plea on February 15, 2013.

This investigation began on April 9, 2012, when an Oregon State Police trooper stopped a car travelling 85 miles per hour in a 55 mile per hour zone, near Canby, Oregon.  The defendant was a passenger in that car and a small safe near his feet contained methamphetamine and packaging material.  

A warrant was issued when the defendant failed to appear on earlier charges and on June 15, 2012, Canby police detectives arrested Ostlund after seeing him with others at a Wilsonville motel.  When he resisted arrest, defendant was subdued; officers found two hotel room keys in his possession.  Subsequent searches of the hotel rooms found two large baggies of methamphetamine and $3,271 in currency.  The federal indictment charging Ostlund with possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine was returned on September 5, 2012. 

On October 17, 2012, a Portland Police officer saw defendant in a southeast Portland apartment complex driving a suspected stolen car.  Ostlund became agitated, and fled, only to be struck by a Taser.  When Ostlund fell to the ground, the Taser prongs dislodged and he was able to flee, until a K-9 unit arrived.  He was located hiding in the complex, and arrested.  A search of his vehicle revealed a plastic box hidden under the hood, containing a large quantity of methamphetamine and $1,365 in currency.

Court records show the defendant first used marijuana at age 15, began using methamphetamine at age 17, and turned to cocaine at age 18.  He was a 1998 graduate of Canby High School, where he played football all four years and was selected as an all-conference player his senior year.  He had nine prior arrests and convictions and was on post-prison supervision abscond status at the time of his arrest in April, 2012.

The case was investigated by the Canby Police Department, Oregon State Police, Portland Police and the Marion County Probation Office.  Assistant U. S. Attorney John Haub prosecuted the case.

Formerly of Ridgefield, Washington, Defendant Admits to Fraudulent Loan Applications Totaling $3.825 Million Dollars to Umpqua Bank

PORTLAND, Ore. - Sheldon Harmon, formerly of Ridgefield, Washington now of St. George, Utah pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez today to one count of bank fraud, one count of false statements to a bank, and two counts of money laundering. 

Harmon refinanced a commercial real property located in Vancouver, Washington through Umpqua Bank’s commercial lending in Beaverton, Oregon.  To qualify for the loan, Harmon submitted several false leases to Umpqua Bank indicating that multiple tenants were renting approximately 90% of the commercial property and paying rent to Harmon of almost $70,000 per month.  During the underwriting process, Harmon had business signs for the tenants made and hung them outside office space in the building and during a tour of the building, showed Umpqua Bank’s representatives where the tenants purportedly worked.  In fact, none of the tenants were leasing the office space in the building as represented by Harmon and not one of them had made a lease payment to Harmon.  Based on Harmon’s misrepresentations, Umpqua loaned him $3.825 million dollars and Harmon took out cash proceeds of over $1 million.  Harmon admitted that he laundered over $500,000 of the loan proceeds through his bank account.

“Individuals who steal from financial institutions through deception will be prosecuted by this office.  We will not permit the integrity of our banking system to be manipulated by cheats,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  Marshall thanked the Internal Revenue Service and the United States Postal Service for their combined investigative efforts. 

“Lying to a bank in order to trick them into giving you other people’s money is criminal and runs counter to ideals, like honesty and fair dealing, which are essential to the strength of our financial system,” said Steven J. Bellis, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in Oregon. “I am pleased that IRS Special Agents bring their unique expertise in following the money to cases like this in order to help hold people engaging in fraud accountable for their actions.”

Bank fraud and false statements to a bank carry a maximum term of 30 years in prison.  Money laundering carries a maximum penalty of 10 years.  Sentencing is set for August 12, 2013.

This investigation was conducted by Special Agents Abraham Smith and Nicholas Warner at the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service.  This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle Kerin and Katie Lorenz.

Case Relates to the Collapse of Desert Sun Development in Bend, Oregon

EUGENE, Ore. – Today, Jeffrey Sprague, 50, of Bend, Oregon, appeared before Chief U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aiken and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to make false statements to a financial institution, to commit wire fraud, and to commit bank fraud.  The charge arose out of the collapse of Desert Sun Development (DSD), a development and construction company in Bend, Oregon.  As part of his guilty plea, Sprague admitted that he caused his former employer, West Coast Bank, to lose more than $2.6 million on fraudulent loans.

According to court documents, Sprague, a loan officer at West Coast Bank at the time, falsified loan applications for DSD employees and others by fraudulently inflating their monthly income and falsely claiming that these homes were going to be the employees’ primary residences when he knew these homes were part of DSD’s flipping scheme.  Sprague also knew that these loan files contained forged or scanned signatures and other material misrepresentations and omissions.  West Coast Bank approved and funded the loans for DSD employees and others based on the loan applications Sprague falsified as well as the other documents that Sprague submitted to the bank that he knew were false.

Out of the DSD investigation, 13 individuals were charged in five indictments, and, with Sprague’s guilty plea, all 13 defendants have pled guilty.  Sprague is scheduled to appear before Chief Judge Aiken for sentencing on September 3, 2013.  Sentencing hearings for the co-defendants are scheduled for July 10 and July 31, 2013, before Chief Judge Aiken.

Conspiracy carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

This case was investigated by the FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigations, and the Oregon Division of Finance and Corporate Securities.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott E. Bradford is handling the prosecution of the case.

Portland, Ore. — James Joseph Bjorne Bennett, 55, most recently of Portland, Oregon and formerly of Fairbanks, Alaska, was sentenced to 168 months in prison today by United States District Judge Michael W. Mosman, for a string of bank robberies Bennett committed in the Portland area in September 2008.  On January 4, 2011, Bennett pleaded guilty to five counts of bank robbery and two counts of attempted bank robbery.  Upon release from custody, Bennett will serve a 3-year period of supervised release.

“Bank robbers endanger and intimidate tellers and bank employees, as well as anyone else who walks into the bank on the wrong day.” said U.S. Attorney S. Amanda Marshall.  “This defendant will have many years in prison to reflect upon the harm he caused numerous people in these seven banks who were just trying to do their jobs and their banking.”

Bennett was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service in September 2008.  Bennett has admitted that on September 15, 2008, he robbed the Wells Fargo Bank on SE McLoughlin Blvd. in Milwaukie; on September 19, 2008, he robbed the West Coast Bank on Southwest Pacific Highway in Tigard; on September 22, 2008, he robbed the US Bank on NE Cornell Rd. in Hillsboro; on September 25, 2008, he attempted to rob the Bank of America on SE 82nd Avenue in Happy Valley and the KeyBank on SE McLoughlin Blvd. in Oak Grove, and he successfully robbed the US Bank on SE Third Street in Gresham; and on September 26, 2008, he robbed the Unitus Community Credit Union on SE Washington Street in Portland.  Judge Mosman ordered Bennett to pay full restitution to the victim banks, in the amount of $14,145.98.

This case stemmed from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with invaluable cooperation and coordination from several local law enforcement agencies.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Craig Gabriel and Stacie Beckerman.

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Justice Department announced today that Oregon developer David Montagne and others affiliated with him have agreed to pay $80,000 and remove accessibility barriers at Gateway Village, a 275 unit apartment complex in Salem, Oregon, to settle a lawsuit alleging that they had violated the Fair Housing Act by building the complex with steps and other features that made it inaccessible to persons with disabilities.

Under the terms of the parties’ agreement, Montagne and the other developers, Montagne Development Company, Gateway II LLC, Dav II Investment Group LLC and William Jones, must take extensive actions to make the complex accessible to persons with disabilities. These corrective actions include removing steps from sidewalks, widening interior doorways, reducing threshold heights, replacing excessively sloped portions of sidewalks, and installing properly sloped curb ramps to allow persons with disabilities to access the sidewalks from the parking areas. In addition, these defendants will pay $48,000 to the Fair Housing Council of Oregon, whose investigation revealed the violations and which intervened in the United States’ lawsuit, and $32,000 to establish a settlement fund for the purpose of compensating disabled individuals impacted by the accessibility violations. This settlement does not resolve the entire lawsuit. The case continues against the defendant that provided design and engineering services for Gateway Village, Multi/Tech Engineering.

“The Fair Housing Act ensures that persons with disabilities do not face unnecessary barriers to access to housing of their choice and are able to make full use of that housing,” said Eric Halperin, Senior Counsel and Special Counsel for Fair Lending in the Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department is strongly committed to the enforcement of the fair housing laws that protect the rights of persons with disabilities to have equal opportunities to enjoy the housing of their choice.”

“Accessible housing is a fundamental protection afforded by the Fair Housing Act,” stated U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, S. Amanda Marshall. “I am committed to working with the Fair Housing Council of Oregon and our federal, state, and local partners to ensure Oregonians have accessible housing choices in accordance with federal law.”

The lawsuit, filed in September 2011, arose as a result of a complaint filed by the Fair Housing Council of Oregon with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). After HUD investigated the complaint, it issued a charge of discrimination and referred the matter to the Justice Department.

“Having accessible features in an apartment complex is not just a legal requirement. These features are essential for people with disabilities to live their lives fully and independently,” said John Trasviña, HUD Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. “HUD and the Justice Department are committed to ensuring that housing developers meet the accessibility requirements of the Fair Housing Act.”

"Home is our safe harbor; the place where we nurture our family and our dreams. People with disabilities deserve the same opportunities as everyone else to access a home of their choice. We believe that this settlement helps makes Gateway Apartments a more inclusive community and also helps Oregonians to understand the importance of removing physical barriers that limit the dreams of people with disabilities0." Pegge McGuire, Executive Director, Fair Housing Council of Oregon.

Individuals who are entitled to share in the settlement fund will be identified through a process established in the settlement. Persons who believe they were subjected to unlawful discrimination at Gateway Village either when they lived there or considered living there should contact the Justice Department toll-free at 1-800-896-7743 mailbox # 9993 or e-mail the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.gov.

The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin, and disability.  More information about the Civil Rights Division and the laws it enforces is available at www.usdoj.gov/crt.  Individuals who believe that they have been victims of housing discrimination can call the Housing Discrimination Line at 1-800-896-7743, e-mail the Justice Department at fairhousing@usdoj.govor contact HUD at 1-800-669-9777.

For more information, please see the attached order Here

Co-Defendant Pleads Guilty to Assisting with Destroying Evidence

EUGENE, Ore. – Timothy McCarty, 43, of Eugene, Oregon, was sentenced to 78 months in prison and 5 years of supervised release for distributing child pornography and destroying evidence.  His co-defendant, Donna Giovenco, 46, also of Eugene, Oregon, pleaded guilty to misprision of a felony for her role in the destruction of evidence.

According to the government’s sentencing memorandum, McCarty distributed child pornography to an undercover agent in Canada.   Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) began an investigation, and in an attempt to identify where McCarty was living, agents interviewed his co-defendant and former roommate, Giovenco.   During the interview, agents disclosed to Giovenco that McCarty was suspected of distributing child pornography.  Despite advising Giovenco to keep the investigation quiet, she promptly reached out to McCarty’s family and told them agents were looking for McCarty.

At Giovenco’s request, McCarty met with her to discuss the matter.   Prior to arriving at the meeting, McCarty was seen in surveillance video dumping a bag in the dumpster.   After the meeting, the video shows Giovenco driving McCarty to the dumpster were he retrieves the bag and smashes it.  They then drive off.   The bag contained McCarty’s hard drive, which was eventually buried in an unknown location and has not been recovered. 

During her change of plea, Giovenco admitted that she assisted McCarty with disposing of a hard drive believed to contain images of child pornography and other evidence of distribution of child pornography.

Sentencing for Giovenco is set for July 29, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. before Chief U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken.  The maximum sentence is three (3) years imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, one (1) year of supervised release, and a $100 fee assessment.

This investigation was conducted by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy E. Potter.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s

Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

PORTLAND, Ore. – A caregiver who concealed the death of an elderly man in her care by burying his body, has pleaded guilty to the theft of more than $200,000 in Social Security retirement benefits paid on his behalf.  Carel June Cody, 47, of Cottage Grove, pleaded guilty in federal court this morning to bank fraud, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.  Cody admitted stealing the benefits since 1996, forging the man’s signature on checks payable to herself, and lying to a federal agent to conceal the man’s death.  Cody has remained in custody since her arrest in May 2012.  Sentencing is scheduled for July 29, 2013, at 9:00 a.m.

According to documents filed by the government, Cody was the caregiver for John Arnold when he died sometime between 1994 and 1996.  Instead of alerting authorities, Cody enlisted the help of others to bury his body on private property and conceal his death.  Since that time, she has been stealing Arnold’s Social Security benefits.  The investigation regarding the death of Mr. Arnold was conducted by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, and to date no charges have been brought against Cody related to the manner of Mr. Arnold’s death or the disposal of his body.

The plea agreement anticipates that Cody’s sentencing guideline range will be 21-27 months in prison, in addition to the 24-month mandatory prison sentence for aggravated identity theft.  The government will be seeking the maximum sentence under the sentencing guidelines.  The plea agreement also requires Cody to pay $203,528 in restitution including relinquishing her federal retirement account of approximately $36,000 to the government to be applied towards her restitution obligation.

Cody’s husband Ernest Cook pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property and is scheduled to be sentenced July 30, 2013, at 10:00 a.m.

The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, and the Roseburg Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Helen L. Cooper, as part of a partnership venture between the Social Security Administration Office of General Counsel and the United States Attorney’s Office.

MEDFORD, Ore. – Robert Powelson, 30, Eduardo Navarro, 24, Dallas Tedford, 32, Kayla Strange, 23, and Lana Marshall, 29, all of Medford, Oregon , were indicted by a federal grand jury. They were all charged with mail theft, aggravated identity theft, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit mail theft, and bank and mail fraud. The charges involve the theft of mail from over 800 victims from the Medford, Oregon area during a seven month period beginning in September 2012 and include a scheme for using the victim’s stolen personal identity to defraud banks and local businesses. Navarro and Tedford are currently in custody. Arrest warrants have been issued for Powelson, Strange, and Marshall and anyone with information about their whereabouts is requested to contact the Medford Police Department or their nearest law enforcement agency.

For more information, please see the attached Indictment Here

An indictment is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant should be presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, the sentences range from maximum sentences of 5 to 30 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum sentence of two years for an aggravated identity theft conviction.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is working with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Medford Police Department in the investigation and prosecution of this case.

PORTLAND, Ore. – U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown today sentenced Bradley Lawrence Berg, 42, of Milwaukie, Oregon, to 48 months in prison for aggravated identity theft, wire fraud, and burglary of a federally insured credit union. Berg also was ordered to pay $45,000 in restitution. Berg committed this latest offense while he was on supervised release after being sentenced to seventy-one months in federal prison for felon in possession of a firearm in 2001.

The Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office began investigating a burglary of the Oregonians Federal Credit Union in Milwaukie, Oregon, after employees discovered a roof-top entry had been made during the night of October 7, 2010. Deputies discovered the ATM had been tampered with and the keypad to the vault door had been removed. A used bandage was seized from the crawl space next to the ATM and submitted to the Oregon State Police Crime Lab which determined that Berg’s DNA was on the bandage.

Sometime between November 5, 2010 and November 8, 2010, and again on December 6, 2010, Qwest Communications (now Century Link Communications, Inc.) experienced break-ins to work vans that were stored behind security fencing. Very expensive fiber optic equipment was missing and eventually sold on eBay internet sites.

The Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office continued to investigate additional roof-top burglaries at a Clackamas Office Depot store on November 20, 2010 and December 12, 2010, and recovered a tool with Berg’s name on it during the investigation. Berg was later arrested inside a stolen auto in North Portland, on December 26, 2010, when officers responded to a silent alarm and found Berg breathing heavily while pretending to be asleep in the stolen car.

The investigation showed that Berg had instructed his girlfriend to sell stolen merchandise on eBay. A search warrant was executed on Berg’s residence and his storage locker, discovering identity theft equipment, personal information of others, PayPal checks, counterfeit social security cards, and drivers licenses. Upon discovery of the counterfeit documents, the U.S. Secret Service joined the investigation. The defendant later admitted that he sold a fiber fusion splicer for $8,600 to an electrical firm in LaGrange Kentucky, by advertising it on eBay, and collecting wire transferred funds via his PayPal account.

Berg’s girlfriend, Kristin Danielle Burke, 41, was prosecuted in Clackamas County Circuit Court. Berg is expected to face state court charges in Clackamas and Multnomah Counties for property crimes committed there.

The case was investigated by the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office and the U.S. Secret Service. Assistant U. S. Attorney John Haub prosecuted the case.

EUGENE, Ore. – Chief U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken sentenced Tamara (Tami) Sawyer, 49, and Kevin Sawyer, 60, of Bend, Oregon, today for their roles in an investment fraud scheme that cost investors almost $6 million.  Defendant Tami Sawyer, a former real estate broker, was sentenced to 108 months in federal prison for a litany of charges, including conspiracy, wire fraud, bank fraud, making false statements to financial institutions, and money laundering.  Defendant Kevin Sawyer, a former Bend Police Captain, was sentenced to 27 months for making false statements to financial institutions.  The defendants were also ordered to pay $5,820,307.55 in restitution to the victims of the fraud.  At the conclusion of the sentencing hearing, both defendants were remanded to custody of the U.S. Marshal to begin serving their sentence with the Bureau of Prisons.  Upon release from their prison terms, both defendants are ordered to five years of supervised release.

            Defendants ran a fraudulent real estate investment scheme through their company Starboard LLC.  They enticed investors by falsely promising high rates of return, typically 12 percent, and secured the investments with promissory notes.  Rather than investing the money as promised, defendants used it to pay other investors, to fund their other companies and ventures, and to pay personal expenses, including cars, credit cards, and the construction of their $2 million vacation home in Mexico.  As a result of defendants’ fraud, investors and banks lost almost $6 million.  

“Lying, cheating, and stealing never pays in the end,” commented U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “Individuals like these defendants, who use positions of wealth, prominence, or trust to further their scheme, rob others of more than their hard-earned money and financial independence.  They also rob their victims of their ability to trust others, isolating them in society.  This behavior cannot and will not be tolerated as shown by today’s sentence.”

            “The Sawyers used their standing in the community to sell their investors on what was supposed to be a golden opportunity. However, it was an opportunity tarnished by greed,” said Greg Fowler, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon. “More than 30 victims have paid the price for that greed, but, today, they can be assured that the court system has delivered on a promise of justice.”

“The IRS is committed to identifying fraudsters who prey on others in order to satisfy their own greed and to working with our law-enforcement partners to shut them down. Hardworking people entrusted Tamara Sawyer with their savings and financial futures, and she violated that trust for her own financial gain,” said Steven J. Bellis, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation in the Pacific Northwest. “This sentencing is a warning that being trusted with money from investors carries a duty to the highest standard of conduct, and that willfully ignoring that duty carries severe consequences.”

            This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott E. Bradford and Amy E. Potter.

18 Defendants from Four States Convicted

PORTLAND, Ore. – Kingsley Iyare Osemwengie, 27, of Las Vegas, Nevada, was sentenced by U.S. District Senior Judge Ancer L. Haggerty today to 210 months in prison. Osemwengie pled guilty in December of 2012 to a three-count indictment charging him with conspiracy to distribute oxycodone, conspiracy to launder drug proceeds, and conspiracy to violate the travel act, for his pivotal role in an oxycodone distribution ring that involved drug trafficking and money laundering activity in Massachusetts, Nevada, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Utah, Colorado, New York, Washington, Alaska, Pennsylvania, and Oregon, between January 2008 and his arrest in March of 2011. He became the 18th defendant convicted in this case. This investigation, dubbed Operation Trick or Treat, was the largest oxycodone trafficking case in the history of the District of Oregon based on the sheer volume of oxycodone distributed, the geographic scope of the conspiracy, and the enormous profits generated for the benefit of the defendants.

“This is the largest oxycodone trafficking conspiracy ever prosecuted in Oregon, and one of the largest in the nation,” said United States Attorney Amanda Marshall. “Stemming the flow of prescription opiates is a crucial feature of our drug enforcement strategy, as addiction from these drugs and the conversion to heroin use is a national epidemic. I commend the exceptional agency partnerships that brought these conspirators to justice. In addition to the sentence in this case, the court forfeited more than $600,000 in drug proceeds. Taking the profit out of drug trafficking is another key part of our deterrence strategy.”

Oxycodone is a Schedule II drug under the federal Controlled Substances Act. As a prescription-only product, this powerful pain reliever from the opioid family carries a high risk of abuse, addiction, and overdose, including death. In 2011, at least 93 overdose deaths in Oregon were caused by oxycodone and its cousin painkiller hydrocodone. People who become addicted to oxycodone often switch to the opiate heroin that is much cheaper and more easily obtainable on the street. This frequently leads to heroin addiction, overdose, and occasionally death.

While on supervised release for two prior federal felonies involving fraud, Osemwengie, operating from Las Vegas, Nevada, and associate Olubenga Temitope Badamosi, 34, a Nigerian citizen living in Milwaukie, Oregon, arranged for tens of thousands of oxycodone pills, acquired in Miami and Las Vegas, to be distributed to customers all over the United States. They used call girls and couriers to transport oxycodone and money across the country. Investigators identified 774 airplane flights for 71 different couriers to 40 different American cities at a total cost of $96,000 during the life of the conspiracy. At other times, drugs and money were transported by commercial carrier or through the mail. Over 10,000 oxycodone pills and 1,900 counterfeit oxycodone pills were seized by investigators in this case. A single 80 milligram oxycodone pill sold for a range of $30 wholesale to $80 retail.

Osemwengie, Badamosi, and other conspirators netted millions of dollars of drug proceeds that allowed them to live opulent lifestyles. Between January of 2008 and October of 2010, cash deposits totaling $1,218,000 were made into six bank accounts controlled by Osemwengie. He created several shell companies to disguise the source of his income and maintained luxury residences in Las Vegas, Nevada, and Miami, Florida, one of which carried a $10,000 per month rent. Meanwhile, he drove high-end automobiles including two Mercedes Benzes and four Bentleys, one of which he purchased with $118,500 in cash. Badamosi acquired expensive jewelry appraised at $114,000, including two flashy, diamond-encrusted watches containing 800 and 1,000 diamonds, respectively. Defendant Allotey owned a diamond-studded pendant appraised at $32,000. Investigators seized and forfeited all of this jewelry, along with over $133,000 in cash, bank accounts totaling over $100,000, six (6) handguns, and nine (9) vehicles, including two Bentleys and four Mercedes Benzes. The dollar value of the forfeited assets exceeds $600,000.

The following defendants have previously been sentenced for oxycodone conspiracy charges arising out of this case:

• Badamosi, 34, of Milwaukie, OR, sentenced to 87 months prison;
• David George Hollins II, 29, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 41 months prison;
• Hung Van Pham, 32, of Vancouver, WA, sentenced to 27 months prison;
• Shaun Wesley Tyler, 32, of Las Vegas, NV, sentenced to 37 months prison;
• Marcus Charles Albert, 33, of Las Vegas, NV, sentenced to 63 months prison;
• Melvin A. Allotey, 29, of Las Vegas, NV, sentenced to 48 months prison;
• Mei Lynn Pham, 32, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 33 months prison;
• Adam Garrott Lewis, 28, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 37 months prison;
• Leamon Dlloyd Madden, 28, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 37 months prison;
• Isaiah Griffith, 28, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 30 months prison;
• Heather O'Rourke, 22, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 27 months prison;
• Christopher Gene Buckland, 35, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 30 months prison;
• Heath Leroy Bloodgood, 42, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 37 months prison;
• Thanh Quoc Nguyen, 32, of Portland, OR, sentenced to 41 months prison; and,
• Lee Justin Wells, 34, of Tacoma, WA, sentenced to 41 months prison.

Two other codefendants have pled guilty to related oxycodone conspiracy charges and are scheduled for sentencing before Judge Haggerty in Portland:

• Reina Tomiko Nakachi, 27, of Las Vegas, NV, sentencing on June 10, 2013, and,
• Sarah Nilsen, 26, of Miami, FL, sentencing on June 17, 2013.

“Opiate addiction is the center of the storm which leaves behind a path of devastation,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Matthew G. Barnes. “This was a sophisticated drug trafficking organization that diverted legitimate medicine into the black market across the United States. The sheer greed of these 18 defendants led them to live lavish lifestyles while ruining many lives.  DEA and our law enforcement partners are determined to continue to aggressively pursue those who are responsible for the high rate of prescription drug abuse in Oregon.”

“Prescriptions such as oxycodone used illegally can destroy lives—especially in young people who may use it as a springboard to other illegal narcotics,” stated Portland Police Chief Mike Reese. “The successful prosecution of large-scale distribution and trafficking cases such as this will help stop the flow of illegal oxycodone into the hands of our children and our community.”

“Today’s prison sentence is a reminder of the serious consequences drug traffickers face for bringing illicit drugs into our communities,” said Bradford Bench, Special Agent in Charge of ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Seattle. “When you’re talking about a dangerous and highly addictive drug that ruins lives and fosters further crime with illicit profits, the risks to public safety are real.  HSI remains committed to dismantling the international drug trade while ensuring that those involved don’t benefit financially.”

“These sentencings are a reminder that justice will be served on individuals who put the safety of our community at risk by selling and profiting from the illegal sale of the dangerous drug oxycodone,” said Tamera D. Cantu, Assistant Special Agent of IRS Criminal Investigation in Seattle.  “IRS CI and our law enforcement partners are committed to dismantling similar drug trafficking organizations.”

This case was initiated in June of 2010 by the Oregon HIDTA Interdiction Task Force (HIT) who partnered with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and the Portland Police Bureau. Additional law enforcement assistance was provided by the U.S. Marshals, Oregon National Guard, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Ft. Lauderdale Police Department, Broward County Sheriffs Office, Clackamas County Sheriffs Office, Westside Interagency Narcotics Task Force (WIN), and the Clark-Vancouver Drug Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Geoffrey A. Barrow and John F. Deits, prosecuted the criminal case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Leslie Westphal and AnneMarie Sgarlata handled the asset forfeitures in the case.

This case was an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation.  OCDETF is a federally-funded program established in 1982 whose mission is to support comprehensive, multi-agency investigations designed to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.  This case was also an investigation under the Oregon High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program, sponsored by the White House's Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).  HIDTA is a counterdrug grant program that provides funding, coordination, and intelligence resources to multi-agency drug enforcement task forces seeking to disrupt or dismantle local, multi-state, and international drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.

PORTLAND, Ore. - A former Portland Police Bureau Officer was sentenced to five years in federal court today for receiving child pornography.  Scott Edward Elliott, 51, pleaded guilty, admitting that in the fall of 2009, he received several images of child sexual abuse during a yahoo chat session.  Several of those images involved infants, and children under the age of 8 subjected to masochistic sexual contact by adult males.  According to the prosecutor, Assistant U. S. Attorney Kelly Zusman, Elliott’s chat logs reveal that he “enthusiastically” received the images, and asked for more.

Elliott was arrested in March of 2011 as the result of an on-line, undercover operation in which a Multnomah County detective posed as an underage girl in a romance chat room.  Elliott spent several months engaging in online sexual conversations with the detective posing as the girl, and he encouraged her to watch him on a webcam and to sexually stimulate herself while she did so.  Eventually, Elliott tried to arrange a meeting, and he urged the girl to send him a nude photo of herself.  He was arrested shortly thereafter, and officers discovered a thumb drive in his pocket that contained images of child sexual abuse.  State charges were eventually dismissed in lieu of the federal prosecution.  Elliott voluntarily agreed to resign from the Portland Police Bureau, and he has remained in federal custody since his arrest.  In imposing sentence, Judge Anna J. Brown noted Elliott’s “long, decorated service as a Portland officer,” and commented that he had done everything he could to “atone” for his conduct.  Elliott will serve a five-year term of supervised release after his prison term, and will be required to register as a sex offender.

The case was investigated by Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office and the INTERCEPT Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Kelly Zusman handled the prosecution of the case.

EUGENE, Ore. – Walter Thomas Swartz, 29, of Eugene, Oregon, was sentenced On April 23, 2013, to 48 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute methylenedioxymethamphetamine, more commonly known as ecstasy or MDMA, and using the mail to distribute proceeds of that unlawful activity.

In April 2012, investigators served a search warrant at Swartz’ home in Eugene and seized two and half pounds of ecstasy powder, 24 ecstasy pills, three pounds of dry psilocybin mushrooms, 27 grams of cocaine, four and half pounds of marijuana, a shotgun, a pistol and a mailed package containing $16,000 in cash.  

The return address on the package containing the $16,000 led investigators to a man in Colorado who Swartz met ten years earlier while both attended college in Oregon.  The man admitted mailing the $16,000 and mailing up to $10,000 in cash on at least five previous occasions, all at Swartz’ direction.  The cash involved in the transactions was forfeited.  Swartz is a 2007 graduate of the University of Oregon, with a Bachelor degree in Environmental Science and Environmental Geography.

Chief United States District Judge Ann Aiken presided over the case and during sentencing reprimanded defendant Swartz for creating more casualties for society by distributing illegal drugs.  She also ordered Swartz to perform 300 hours of community service after completion of his four year prison sentence.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations and Drug Enforcement Administration worked with state and local police on the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney William “Bud” Fitzgerald prosecuted the case.

PORTLAND, Ore. – On Wednesday, April 17, 2012, Oregon District Judge Michael W. Mosman sentenced Tu Ngoc Tran, 38, of Portland, Oregon, to 63 months in prison following his conviction in a jury trial on drug and wire fraud charges on December 7, 2012. The federal jury convicted Tran of one count of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute marijuana, two counts of manufacturing marijuana, one count of making a false statement on a loan application and one count of wire fraud.  He was ordered to pay $341,112.83 in restitution to the victim lender, as well as a money judgment of $346,859.86.

Three other conspirators pleaded guilty to related offenses in this case.  Minhthy Ngoc Tran pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture or distribute marijuana and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  Huy Anh Nguyen pleaded guilty to manufacturing marijuana and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  Kiet Anh Nguyen pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank larceny, a misdemeanor.

In late 2010, law enforcement officers from the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Unit (SIU) and the Clark Skamania Task Force (CSTF) in the Western District of Washington received an anonymous letter describing Tran’s involvement in illegal marijuana trafficking and mortgage fraud in Oregon and Washington.  The letter described Tran’s use of two men as “straw buyers” to secure a loan of $350,000 that he used to buy a residence in Portland where he built a sophisticated marijuana production and distribution site. 

In late December of 2010 and early January of 2011, members of the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, the Clark Skamania Drug Task Force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Regional Organized Crime Narcotics Task Force executed search warrants at four residences in Oregon and Washington used as illegal marijuana grow operations by Tran and his associates.   Officers found a sophisticated marijuana grow room with 225 marijuana plants, extensive indoor growing and packaging equipment, and a money counter at Tran’s residence.  They seized more than 50 pounds of processed marijuana with an estimated value of $160,000.  At the Vancouver, Washington residence owned by co-defendant Nguyen, officers found another sophisticated marijuana growing site operated by Tran with 238 marijuana plants. 

Tran initially claimed to be growing marijuana for 10 people under the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program (OMMP).  However, an OMMP representative advised law enforcement that Tran was not registered to grow marijuana for anyone other than himself and that the locations he used were not registered with OMMP as authorized marijuana grow sites.

“This case is another example of criminals exploiting state medical marijuana programs to disguise drug trafficking and money laundering operations,” said U.S. Attorney Amanda Marshall.  “This defendant concealed his illegal drug cultivation and distribution business behind state medical marijuana cards. He concealed his illegal proceeds in fraudulent real estate transactions. The jury who heard this case saw through those lies and concluded the defendant is a drug dealer and a fraud.  The sentencing judge imposed an appropriate sentence for his illegal conduct.”

This case was investigated by the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office, the Regional Organized Crime Narcotics Task Force, the Clark Skamania Drug Task Force, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The case was prosecuted by Assistant U. S. Attorneys Jennifer Martin, Robert Nesler and AnneMarie Sgarlata.

PORTLAND, Ore. – Yusaf Jawed, 44, Portland, Oregon, entered a guilty plea in federal court to five counts of mail fraud and 12 counts of wire fraud in connection with an investment fraud scheme he orchestrated in Oregon, Washington, California, and other states. Sentencing has been scheduled for June 21, 2013 at 10:30 a.m.

The 17-count information alleges that from February 2008 through September 2009, Jawed raised approximately $6.4 million from investors in a hedge fund he controlled called the Alpha Qualified Fund. Contrary to representations by Jawed, very little of the money was actually invested and most of the funds were diverted to unrelated purposes such as payment of finders’ fees and commissions, repayment of loans, payment of office expenses, and payment to prior investors.

Each count of mail and wire fraud carries with it a maximum sentence of 20 years, a fine of $250,000 and five years of supervised release. As part of Jawed’s plea agreement, both parties will recommend a period of 78 months in prison. In addition, Jawed agreed to $6.4 million in forfeiture, to the extent assets exist, and to make restitution to investors as ordered by the court.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the Securities and Exchange Commission, which also filed a civil lawsuit against Jawed and others associated with him. The case was prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel and Assistant U. S. Attorney Allan M. Garten.