Eastern District of Pennsylvania

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Kenneth Fox, D.O., has agreed to pay $489,025 to resolve allegations that he violated the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) by failing to maintain complete and accurate records of controlled substances, failing to keep required receipt and dispensing records, failing to perform biennial inventories, and writing prescriptions “for stock.”

The United States’ investigation involved Fox’s practice located at 1310 Frosty Hollow Road, Levittown, PA 19056.

As part of the settlement, Fox has entered into a three-year Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which includes additional responsibilities regarding the handling of controlled substances. The MOA imposes compliance obligations significantly more stringent than those in the applicable laws and regulations.

Fox prescribes and administers phentermine, a Schedule IV controlled substance, and suboxone, a Schedule III controlled substance.  In February 2013, DEA Investigators discovered that Fox allegedly failed to conduct a biennial inventory, failed to maintain records for receipt and dispensing of controlled substances, and failed to keep controlled substances secure – all in violation of applicable regulations and statutes.  In April 2013, the DEA issued a Letter of Admonition to Fox, who agreed to correct his conduct thenceforth.

Nine years later, the DEA performed another scheduled on-site inspection of Fox’s facility. During this inspection, Investigators discovered that Fox continued the same violations as before, and in addition, was prescribing controlled substances “for stock” in violation of the applicable regulations. On the date of inspection, Fox allegedly produced non-compliant and incomplete dispensing records, and no records of biennial inventory, or invoices/receipts for controlled substances. The Investigators obtained records of Fox’s prescriptions “for stock” from a local retail pharmacy.  Physicians are prohibited from obtaining controlled substances for the purpose of general dispensing to patients; they must comply with the requirements for a valid prescription, including the date, patient’s name and address, drug name and strength, dosage form, quantity prescribed, directions for use, and the physician/registrant’s name, address, and registration number.  The prescription requirement is one of the ways in which controlled substances are tracked to prevent diversion and abuse.

“Physicians who fail to maintain proper records of controlled substances create conditions ripe for diversion, or, at worst, may be engaging in diversion itself,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Physicians and pharmacists have a responsibility to ensure that all controlled substances are tracked through the distribution chain.  Our Office is committed to ensuring total compliance with the Controlled Substances Act and we will vigorously enforce violations wherever we find them.”

Congress enacted the CSA to deter the illegal importation, manufacture, distribution, possession, and improper use of controlled substances, including prescription medications, and requires individuals and entities registered with the DEA to maintain complete and accurate records of all controlled substances and security systems so that controlled substances are not lost, stolen, or inappropriately dispensed.

“The goal of DEA’s closed system of distribution is to insure accountability for controlled substances; it insures that end-users directly receive controlled substances from where they were dispensed,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA’s Philadelphia Field Division. “In ordering controlled substances “for stock” at his office, Dr. Fox made himself a middle-man in this same closed system and created an environment where controlled substances are not properly inventoried or secured.” 

The government’s pursuit of this matter illustrates its emphasis on combating diversion of controlled substances.  The record keeping and other regulations applicable to DEA registrants, including physicians, are the tools by which the DEA deters drug diversion. 

The investigation was conducted by the DEA’s Philadelphia Field Division, Diversion Groups D71 and D72, and the investigation and settlement were handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Viveca D. Parker, with assistance from Asset Investigator Shantelle Kitchen-Nelson.   

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

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Michael Goldner, 52, of Paoli, PA, was sentenced to 40 months in prison and three years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney for his scheme to use his cash and his employer’s business bank accounts to hide his actual income and assets and therefore avoid paying his legitimate tax obligations.

In June 2022, the defendant was convicted after trial of tax evasion and failing to file tax returns in connection with this years-long tax fraud. Evidence presented at trial showed that for the tax years 2013 through 2017, Goldner reported more than $4 million in income and $1.8 million in tax due, of which he paid less than $100,000. Further, from 2016 to 2020, the defendant evaded the payment of these outstanding taxes while earning a substantial income. Instead of depositing his paychecks into a personal bank account, he cashed the checks and used his employer’s business accounts to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars of personal expenses, including rent, a second home, groceries, private school and dance lessons for his child, country club dues, and restitution from a prior fraud conviction for which he was on federal probation. For the years 2016 and 2017, the defendant filed tax returns that failed to report this additional income from his employer. For tax years 2018 and 2019, the defendant failed to file a return altogether.

“The American tax system funds government services critical to our people,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Every time someone cheats the system, the burden of providing vital services increases on taxpayers who pay their fair share. As a professional accountant, this defendant knew what his obligations were and willfully schemed to evade them; and for this fraud he will now spend time behind bars.”

“Our agents have the expertise and investigative tools to uncover tax and financial fraud schemes, no matter how sophisticated the scheme may be,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Goldner’s scheme served no purpose other than to enrich himself, while cheating and stealing from the American public and the government. Anyone contemplating following Goldner’s footstep is urged to take a step back and consider the consequences”

The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Ignall and Trial Attorney Jack Morgan of the Tax Division of the Department of Justice.

PHILADELPHIA - United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced today that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Eric Gibson will lead the efforts of the Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 8, 2022, general election. AUSA Gibson has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of election day complaints of voting rights concerns, threats of violence to election officials or staff, and election fraud, in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

United States Attorney Romero said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted in a fair and free election. Similarly, election officials and staff must be able to serve without being subject to unlawful threats of violence. The Department of Justice will always work tirelessly to protect the integrity of the election process.”

The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring and combatting discrimination and intimidation at the polls, threats of violence directed at election officials and poll workers, and election fraud. The Department will address these violations wherever they occur. The Department’s longstanding Election Day Program furthers these goals and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the electoral process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible federal election law violations.

Federal law protects against such crimes as threatening violence against election officials or staff, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from interference, including intimidation, and other acts designed to prevent or discourage people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice. The Voting Rights Act protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or inability to read or write in English).   

United States Attorney Romero stated that: “The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise can exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. In order to respond to complaints of voting rights concerns and election fraud during the upcoming election, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, AUSA/DEO Gibson will be on duty in this District while the polls are open. He can be reached by the public at the following telephone number (215) 861-8200.”

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day.  The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at 215-418-4000.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by phone at 800-253-3931 or by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/.

United States Attorney Romero said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the assistance of the American electorate. It is important that those who have specific information about voting rights concerns or election fraud make that information available to the Department of Justice.”

Please note, however, in the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities.  State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that James Stevens, 69, of Somerdale, NJ, and Robert Welsh, 59, now living in Arizona, were charged by Indictment with conspiracy, bribery, extortion, and fraud charges related to a scheme to pay off Stevens in exchange for Stevens helping grow the businesses of Welsh. Welsh’s business installed, maintained, and supplied video surveillance equipment to the Southeastern Regional Transportation Authority (SEPTA), and Stevens was a SEPTA official responsible for video surveillance operations at SEPTA.

According to the Indictment, from about March 2014 until about July 2018, the defendants allegedly engaged in a bribery and extortion scheme in which Stevens, who was the Director of the Video Evidence Unit with SEPTA during the time period of the charged conduct, demanded from Welsh, owner and operator of Spector Logistics, Inc., a stream of financial and other benefits in exchange for Stevens’ role in helping maintain and grow Spector’s business with SEPTA. The benefits Welsh provided to Stevens included, most significantly, tens of thousands of dollars in cash payments, as well as donations to an alleged charity that Stevens pocketed, lodging and meals during the 2015 Papal Visit, frequent meals and drinks, tickets to a 2016 Barbra Streisand concert, and funds for SEPTA annual holiday parties. As Stevens demanded, Welsh also offered Stevens future employment with Spector when Stevens retired from SEPTA. During the time of this corrupt relationship, Spector maintained and obtained millions of dollars in contracts with SEPTA. Stevens played a significant role in facilitating and approving contracts for Spector and Blue Zebra, a second company Welsh owned and established with Stevens’ assistance, and helped Spector win bids by giving Welsh inside information about SEPTA’s financial analyses and otherwise collaborating with Welsh in the contracting process. In doing so, Stevens allegedly provided an unfair advantage to Welsh and a disadvantage to other potential vendors.

“Philadelphians deserve public employees who do their jobs honestly, without corrupting the system to line their own pockets,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As alleged in the Indictment, the defendants’ participation in this scheme was extensive: using millions of dollars in public contracts to fraudulently benefit themselves.”

“SEPTA exists to transport people where they want to go — not to move crooked insiders up a tax bracket,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Stealing public money through back-door deals is reprehensible and the FBI will hold accountable anyone foolish enough to engage in this kind of fraud.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Victor Ortiz, 45, of Philadelphia, PA, was arrested and charged by Indictment for stalking and assaulting a woman with whom he had a previous relationship.

According to the Indictment, on the morning of May 4, 2022, the defendant pursued the victim, who is his ex-girlfriend and a federal employee, as she walked to her office in Philadelphia. Before reaching her office, the defendant allegedly threw a caustic substance on victim’s face and torso. His attack temporarily blinded the victim in her left eye and caused severe pain and scarring on her body. Additionally, the defendant attached a GPS device to the victim’s vehicle so that he could monitor her location and stalk her. After law enforcement officials discovered and removed the device, the defendant was caught on camera allegedly attempting to install a second GPS device on the victim’s vehicle in July 2022.

“The charges against Victor Ortiz allege behavior that is dangerous, terrorizing and abhorrent,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Everyone deserves to feel safe as they go about their daily lives: at home, while at work, and in transit; and intimate partner violence can sometimes be the most terrifying kind because someone who knows you well can strike any part of your routine. Thank you to our partners with Homeland Security Investigations for their dedicated work on this case.”

“Threats and violence against federal employees will never be tolerated,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “HSI Philadelphia is committed to utilizing our investigative expertise, technical capabilities and partnerships to investigate and pursue the prosecution of those who threaten, harm or intimidate government officers or employees.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael R. Miller and Angella Middleton.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation.  A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that the Honorable Mitchell S. Goldberg of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania entered a default judgment against Timothy Warren of Wichita, Kansas and his company, Titan Medical Compliance, LLC (“Titan”), in the amount of $15,270,066, for violations of the False Claims Act (“FCA”).

This judgment is the latest action in the national investigation into the scheme of improper billing involving P-Stim electro-acupuncture devices. P-Stim is also branded as, among other things, ANSiStim, Stivax, NeuroStim, and NSS-2 Bridge. Federal healthcare programs do not reimburse for P-Stim devices, whether they are characterized as an electro-acupuncture device or as an implantable neuro-stimulator. The Eastern District of Pennsylvania has led the national Department of Justice effort to pursue and resolve various FCA cases against P-Stim providers, marketers, distributors, and coders, recovering tens of millions in the last two years.

As alleged in the Complaint, Timothy Warren, a chiropractor in Wichita, Kansas, along with his company, Titan, falsely promoted auricular electro-acupuncture devices as reimbursable by Medicare and other federal insurers, and as approved by the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”). Warren promoted himself to providers as a medical reimbursement consultant, and his company, Titan, as a compliance consulting firm. As a result, various marketers and distributors of P-Stim devices paid Warren a monthly fee to provide coding recommendations to customers. Certain providers also paid Warren directly for coding guidance.

Beginning in 2014, Warren promoted P-Stim devices as reimbursable by Medicare and other federal healthcare programs and provided instructions on what codes to bill. Those codes, generating a high amount of reimbursement, however, were meant for legitimate, surgically implanted neurostimulators to manage chronic pain. P-Stim, on the other hand, could be applied in a few minutes in an office setting without anesthesia and by someone with minimal training. During this time, Warren and Titan had knowledge that the P-Stim devices were not reimbursable by federal healthcare programs, but continued to promote the non-surgical devices anyway.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania filed a Complaint against Warren and Titan on October 14, 2021, and has litigated the case since then, including defeating a motion by Warren and Titan to transfer the case to the District of Kansas. The United States moved for a default judgment after Warren’s and Titan’s counsel withdrew and the defendants then failed to respond. Judge Goldberg granted the motion and entered a default judgment, finding, among other things, that the United States “has stated cognizable claims under the False Claims Act against Defendants, and Defendants have failed to present any litigable defense.”

Warren and Titan are now responsible for statutory penalties totaling $15,270,066, for causing approximately 1,200 claims to be falsely submitted to the federal healthcare programs in violation of the FCA. Given inability-to-pay concerns and the default nature of the judgment, Judge Goldberg recognized this “appropriate” approach to damages in that the United States sought only minimum statutory penalties, rather than actual damages under the FCA, which were far more significant.

“This office has led the national charge to hold individuals and entities responsible for P-Stim fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “With Warren’s judgment, our office has held accountable those responsible for the tainted claims paid by federal healthcare programs. Even those who never applied P-Stim themselves can be held accountable for causing others to submit false claims through marketing and disseminating fraudulent coding advice.” She continued with a warning to other providers and medical device marketers: “If a scheme seems too good to be true, it probably is—and you should be wary.”

The Warren and Titan cases in this District were investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General. These cases have been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Deborah W. Frey and Matthew E. K. Howatt, as well as former Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Crutchlow, Auditor Dawn Wiggins, and Investigator Frank O’Connor.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Shamire Young, 20, of Philadelphia, PA, entered a plea of guilty before United States District Court Judge Nitza I. Quiñones Alejandro to the charge of carjacking stemming from an incident which occurred in the Germantown section of Philadelphia in March 2022, during which he and three other individuals stole a vehicle and fled in it.

According to court documents, in the early morning hours of March 11, 2022, the victim pulled into a gas station on Wissahickon Avenue near Lincoln Drive and went inside the shop while a second victim, his passenger, remained in the vehicle. Moments later, a dark colored vehicle pulled up alongside the victim’s parked vehicle, and three men get out brandishing handguns. When the victim attempted to return to his vehicle, the assailants forced him into a cluster of nearby trees and forced the second victim out of the vehicle and into the same group of trees. After physically assaulting the victim, the assailants got back into both vehicles, two in each, and sped away down Lincoln Drive toward I-76.

Shortly after the incident, the victim’s stolen vehicle, owned by a local dealership and on loan to the victim, was located using the dealership’s tracking technology in the Kingsessing section of the city. The Philadelphia Police Department conducted a forensic analysis of evidence found inside the vehicle, and identified the defendant as one of the carjackers.

“Our Office is committed to supporting the Philadelphia Police Department in its work to investigate and deter violent crime, which includes our partnership on the joint carjacking task force,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “If you commit a violent offense like a gunpoint carjacking, federal authorities will soon be knocking at your door.”

“These armed carjackings are terrifying for victims, targeted out of the blue while just going about their daily lives,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “The FBI, Philly PD, and our partners are committed to stopping such senseless acts of violence and we’ll use every tool we’ve got to put the criminals responsible behind bars, right where they belong.”

“ATF remains committed to keeping our streets safe from violent individuals,” said Eric DeGree, acting Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “The result of this investigation is just another example of the strength of our carjacking task force, which is determined to investigate people committing serious gun offenses and holding them accountable.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael R. Miller.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Tony Ren, 59, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to three months in prison, one year of supervised release, and was ordered to pay a $50,000 fine by United States District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney after being convicted of two counts of bribery.

In December 2021, the defendant was convicted at trial of attempting to bribe an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Compliance Safety and Health Officer in order to induce the official not to report safety violations at a Philadelphia construction site run by Ren, and to eliminate previous safety violations and corresponding fines. As detailed in the Indictment, in October 2017, the OSHA official conducted an inspection of a worksite on Arch Street in response to an imminent hazard report. During the inspection, the official observed numerous violations of OSHA standards including debris in passageways, electrical issues, holes in the floor, and gas tanks with broken pressure gauges. As the evidence presented at trial showed, on two separate dates in November 2017, Ren offered $1,500 cash bribes to the OSHA official in exchange for the official falsifying the inspection results, deleting previous violations from OSHA’s computer system, and agreeing not to report the violations so that the defendant could avoid the substantial penalties that would follow.

“OSHA inspections and standards exist for a reason: to prevent injuries and protect workers,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This defendant attempted to subvert this system of protections by bribing an official to look the other way on multiple workplace safety violations. This case should serve as a warning to all employers and contractors that our Office will investigate and prosecute fully this type of corruption.”

“Tony Ren paid bribes to an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Compliance Safety and Health Officer in order to induce the officer not to report safety violations at a Philadelphia, PA construction site operated by Ren, as well as to eliminate previous safety violations and their corresponding fines. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners and OSHA to investigate those who attempt to undermine the workplace safety laws that exist to protect American workers,” stated Syreeta Scott, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Philadelphia Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.

The case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations-Labor Racketeering and Fraud and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mary Kay Costello.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Joseph Cammarata, 48, of Monmouth Beach, NJ, was convicted after trial for his participation in a securities fraud claims scheme with two co-defendants from New York and New Jersey.

In November 2021, the defendant was charged by Superseding Indictment with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud (Count One), wire fraud (Counts Two through Five), money laundering conspiracy (Count Six), and two counts of money laundering (Counts Eleven and Twelve), along with co-defendants David Punturieri, 42, of Staten Island, NY, and Erik Cohen, 41, of Manalapan, NJ. According to the Superseding Indictment, the defendants were the principals of Alpha Plus Recovery, a claims aggregator firm based in Old Bridge, New Jersey. Defendants Punturieri and Cohen previously pleaded guilty to similar charges.

As the evidence presented at trial showed, Cammarata and his co-defendants used Alpha Plus Recovery to make false and fraudulent claims, including claims made in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, to the proceeds of securities fraud class action, and SEC enforcement action, settlements. They falsely claimed that corporate clients of Alpha Plus Recovery had purchased shares of securities that were the subject of the lawsuits and enforcement actions. In reality, the clients, which were entities actually controlled by the defendants, had not purchased the subject securities. To substantiate the false claims, the defendants created fraudulent brokerage and other financial documents to provide to claims administrators. Cammarata and his co-defendants then transferred the fraudulently obtained funds into accounts they controlled, stealing a total of over $43 million between 2014 and 2021.

“A jury has found that Cammarata and his partners at Alpha Plus manipulated complicated financial transactions for years in order to steal over $40 million,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “They committed fraud on top of fraud, filing claims on behalf of clients that didn’t exist and doctoring false financial documents to support those fraudulent claims, and their theft took money from the pockets of deserving claimants. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of the investigators and prosecutors on this case, all three defendants have now been brought to justice.”

“Year after year, Joseph Cammarata and his partners stole millions from legitimate victim investors entitled to class action settlement funds,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Cammarata used the funds to support his lavish lifestyle, including the use of private jets, the purchase of expensive homes, luxury cars, and yachts, and even the maintenance of a private island in The Bahamas. As investigators closed in, Cammarata doubled down on his lies in order to perpetuate the fraud. What Cammarata didn’t know was that Special Agents from the FBI and Postal Inspectors were methodically building a case based on his emails and phone calls where he and his business partners conspired to lie to claims administrators. This conviction sends a message to all sophisticated white collar criminals that no one is beyond the reach of the FBI and our law enforcement partners.”

“A jury in Philadelphia found Joseph Cammarata guilty of defrauding thousands of investors of settlement monies those investors were owed,” said Raimundo Marerro, the Acting Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the Postal Inspection Service. “Since 2014, Mr. Cammarata used the United States Mail system to submit fraudulent claims to settlement administrators and receive over $43 million in fraudulent payments from these settlement administrators. By doing so, he and his co-conspirators deprived legitimate claimants of monies they should have received.  I want to thank the agents and prosecutors for their efforts following this case through trial and once again reminding people that stealing money through the U.S. Mail is a crime.”

“This conviction reflects IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agents’ continued resolve to investigate and prosecute those who violate federal fraud and money laundering laws,” said Tammy Tomlins, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Newark Field Office. “IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agents are committed to working with our law enforcement partners to aggressively uncover and disrupt criminals who conspire to perpetrate sophisticated schemes to steal millions.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Newark Field Office, and the Securities and Exchange Commission, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David J. Ignall and Paul G. Shapiro.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Samir Ahmad, 29, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Criminal Complaint with firearms trafficking and selling firearms to a person unlawfully in the United States, arising from his sale of two semi-automatic pistols to a confidential informant while he was employed as a Deputy Sheriff with the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office.

According to the court documents, Ahmad was employed as a Deputy Sheriff with the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office beginning in February 2018. In October 2022, when Ahmad was a sworn law enforcement officer as a Deputy Sheriff, he allegedly sold two semi-automatic pistols and ammunition to a confidential informant. During the exchange, the informant explained to Ahmad that he was unlawfully in the United States, and that he could “get deported” if he was caught in possession of a gun. As detailed in the Criminal Complaint, Ahmad responded, simply: “You don’t got to worry about none of that.” The defendant made $3,000 from the sale of the firearms. On October 19, 2022, Ahmad was terminated from employment with the Philadelphia Sheriff’s Office and arrested by federal agents.

The investigation is ongoing.

“As alleged, Samir Ahmad abused his authority – to the greatest extent possible – as a sworn law enforcement officer,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “The defendant was allegedly illegally selling firearms on the street to at least one person who was not permitted to possess them, adding fuel to the already-incendiary fire of deadly gun violence in the City of Philadelphia. Working with our law enforcement partners, we are doing all that we can to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the violence.”

“The idea of a sworn public servant so blatantly undermining public safety is reprehensible,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Philadelphia is awash in illegal guns, which are being used to commit violent crimes, so every weapon we can take off the street and every trafficker we can lock up makes a difference. The FBI and our partners will continue to do everything in our power to make this city safer.”

“The result of this investigation is the paradigm of collaboration between our local, state, and federal partners,” said Eric Degree, acting Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “We cannot let the gun violence we are seeing become the norm. We will continue to use our expertise to identify, investigate, and incarcerate those who commit and those who facilitate the violent firearm crimes that plague our streets.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 15 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys J. Jeanette Kang and Justin T. Ashenfelter.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Wylene Johnson, 41, of Chester, PA; Cookie Bundy, 41, of Philadelphia, PA; Hakeem Cooper, 42, of Philadelphia, PA; Louis Barnett, 43, of Philadelphia, PA; Barry Mitchell, 33, of Philadelphia, PA; and Tameka Edmonds, 32, of Marcus Hook, PA; were charged with various Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) fraud-related offenses in two separate Indictments.

 In the first Indictment, defendants Johnson, Bundy, Cooper, Barnett, and Mitchell are each charged with four counts of mail fraud and one count of theft of government money in connection with a scheme to submit fraudulent PUA applications. As part of the scheme, those charged allegedly submitted (or caused to be submitted) nearly 100 fraudulent applications resulting in a loss to the government of nearly $1 million dollars. All of the applications submitted as part of this scheme listed Johnson’s former address in Philadelphia as the mailing address for benefits. After the benefits were mailed to this address, those charged allegedly accessed either the checks or debit cards issued on the applications.

In addition to the PUA scheme, defendants Johnson, Barnett, and Mitchell are also each charged with three counts of theft of government money for allegedly submitting fraudulent Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications to the Small Business Administration for businesses which did not exist. As a result of these fraudulent application, Johnson allegedly received approximately $52,000 dollars from the SBA which she allegedly spent on personal items. Barnett and Mitchell also allegedly received emergency advances from the SBA which they spent on personal items.

In October 2022, when law enforcement agents from the United States Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Homeland Security Investigations arrested Bundy and Mitchell for the charges in this Indictment, firearms and ammunition were recovered from both of their residences. Immediately thereafter, Bundy and Mitchell were charged by Criminal Complaint with illegally possessing a firearm and ammunition as previously convicted felons.

In the second fraud Indictment announced today, defendant Edmonds is charged with three counts of mail fraud and three counts of theft of government money for allegedly submitting fraudulent PUA, EIDL, and Paycheck Protect Program (‘PPP’) applications. Edmonds is also charged with spending the EIDL and PPP funds on personal items.

On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) was signed into law. The CARES Act created the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program, which provides unemployment benefits to individuals not eligible for regular unemployment compensation or extended unemployment benefits, including individuals, families, and businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligibility to receive weekly PUA benefits is predicated on an applicant’s unemployment for reasons related to the pandemic, and it requires that the applicant was able to work each day and, if offered a job, would have been able to accept it. Once an applicant is approved to receive benefits, the applicant is required to submit weekly certifications indicating that he or she: was ready, willing and able to work each day; was seeking full time employment; did not refuse any job offers or referrals; and had reported any employment during the week and the gross pay or other payments received.

“Pandemic Unemployment Assistance and small business loan funds are intended to help working Americans and small business owners continue to pay their bills and make ends meet, even when revenues have dropped dramatically due to the pandemic,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Thieves who attempt to take these funds under false pretenses are taking advantage of others’ misfortune – ripping them off while also ripping off all taxpayers who fund the programs. These defendants allegedly obtained over $1 million in funds that could have helped struggling businesses and individuals.”

“White collar crime being conducted by convicted felons is part of the new criminal reality facing law enforcement agencies. These criminals are intelligent and bold enough to deliberately defraud the United States government on a large scale,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “Combatting these criminals takes an immense amount of time, effort, and cooperation between the prosecutors and the investigating agencies. We are extremely proud of the working relationships that have developed between all agencies involved.”

“The amount of pandemic program fraud uncovered in the last two-plus years is utterly offensive,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “This was emergency financial assistance meant to keep families, businesses, and the economy afloat, not a golden ticket for crooks and opportunists to live the high life. As these mounting indictments show, the FBI continues to investigate those who so eagerly defrauded the government and we’re committed to holding each and every one accountable for their crimes.”

“An important part of the mission of the Office of Inspector General is to investigate allegations of fraud related to unemployment insurance programs. We will continue to work with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry and our law enforcement partners to investigate these types of allegations”, stated Syreeta Scott, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Philadelphia Region, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General.

This case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Department of Homeland Security Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Everett Witherell and Timothy Lanni.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Jason Rivera, 37, of Queens, NY, was convicted today at trial of kidnapping and extortion charges arising from his involvement with a violent gang, known as “Born To Kill” (a/k/a “BTK”), who paid the defendant money to collect a substantial drug debt from three drug dealers. Two of the three victim dealers, who were brothers, were murdered; the third managed to escape drowning in the Schuylkill River and whose rescue made the case national news.

In the summer of 2014, Rivera and two associates were recruited by members of the BTK gang to forcibly collect money from three marijuana dealers who had failed to pay a substantial drug debt. The co-conspirators, including Rivera, were paid several thousand dollars each using the money they took from the victims. Tam Le, a member of BTK, lured the victims to his home in southwest Philadelphia, where Rivera and the other two co-conspirators assaulted the victims and restrained them with duct tape and zip ties. They then kidnapped and transported the three victims to the Schuylkill River in the back of a van, weighed down their bodies, stabbed them, and dumped all three into the river. Two victims died in the river while the third managed to crawl out of the river and flag down a passing motorist on Kelly Drive for assistance.

In addition to this case, five defendants were federally indicted in connection with this crime and have all pleaded guilty to similar charges. Tam Le was found guilty of murder by a Philadelphia County jury and sentenced to death.

“After the initial investigation and arrests were made in this case which resulted in state charges for two individuals involved with these murders and attempted murder, the trail on the other individuals who helped them went nearly cold,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “But thanks to the persistent efforts and dogged determination of the FBI and other law enforcement partners, our Office was able to charge these remaining individuals, get them off the streets, and bring them to justice for their crimes.”

“What Rivera and his co-conspirators did to their victims was particularly heinous – so much so that, nearly a decade later, the circumstances of these murders and attempted murder still stand out,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Agents and analysts on FBI Philadelphia’s Organized Crime Task Force put years of hard work into the investigation that led to today’s verdict and seen many of the other perpetrators held accountable. We will continue to work to bring to justice Trung Lu, who has been charged in connection with these crimes but remains at large, likely in Vietnam. The FBI is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading directly to Lu’s arrest.”

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert Livermore.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Arthur Rowland, 42, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 40 years in prison, and five years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Gerald J. Pappert for his role in a scheme to import significant amounts of methamphetamine from California for distribution in and around Philadelphia. 

In February 2022, following a seven-day trial, a jury found the defendant guilty of possession of a firearm by a felon, but was unable to reach a verdict on the remaining charges. Then, in May 2022, following a six-day retrial, the jury found Rowland guilty on four of the remaining five counts, including multiple firearms and narcotics offenses. The charges stemmed from Rowland’s role as the main distributor for a group that shipped many hundreds of pounds of nearly pure, Mexican-made methamphetamine to the Philadelphia area for further distribution to individuals suffering with addiction and others substance use disorders. For his part, the defendant provided addresses to his California connections, who in turn, sent him packages containing pounds of methamphetamine. Rowland then took possession of that methamphetamine, sold it, and generated large sums of cash.

When federal law enforcement arrested Rowland and executed a search warrant at his residence near City Avenue in December 2018, agents seized more than a kilogram of methamphetamine, approximately $17,000 cash, a Sig Sauer handgun, and two Draco assault-style weapons, as well as ammunition and a high-capacity drum magazine.

“Rowland and his co-conspirators shipped tons of drugs from one end of this country to the other through a large and sophisticated trafficking enterprise,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Four decades behind bars will keep Arthur Rowland off the street and unable to augment the supply of deadly drugs flowing into our community for a very long time.”

“Arthur Rowland pushed massive amounts of meth onto Philadelphia’s streets,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “But this 40-year sentence officially puts him out of business. The FBI and our partners at the Philadelphia Police Department are committed to taking down and locking up prolific drug traffickers like Rowland — people with no regard for the incredible damage they inflict on so many lives and communities.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Paul G. Shapiro and Timothy M. Stengel.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero and Berks County District Attorney John T. Adams announced today during a press conference in the Berks County Courthouse that Jesus Feliciano-Trinidad, 33; Dewayne Quinones, 29; and Mayco Alvarez-Jackson, 25; all of Reading, PA, were convicted at trial of murder, kidnapping, drug distribution and firearms offenses arising from their involvement with a Reading-area drug trafficking organization which was responsible for multiple homicides, kidnapping, and conspiracies to kidnap in 2017 and 2018, including a quadruple homicide which occurred on January 28, 2018. All three defendants were convicted of federal murder and weapons charges relating to the quadruple homicide.

Over 15 defendants were charged in a series of indictments stemming from a years’ long investigation into the receipt, processing, and distribution of methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and crack cocaine. The indictments detailed the defendants using a number of buildings, residences, firearms and acts of violence to further their drug dealing efforts in and around Reading, including kidnapping and/or shooting multiple individuals in 2017 and 2018; conspiring to shoot and kill Miguel Reyes on December 13, 2017; kidnaping, shooting, and killing Hector Gonzalez-Rivera on January 24, 2018; and shooting and killing Jarlyn Lantigua-Tejada, Juan Rodriguez, Nelson Onofre, and Joshua Santos on January 28, 2018.

 “These three defendants, members of the Trinidad gang, have been convicted by a jury of some of the most serious charges that exist under federal law with penalties of equal gravity,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “These convictions, after years of investigation and preparation, would not have been possible without the partnership of District Attorney Adams and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. I want to thank them and all of our local law enforcement partners here in Berks County as we work together to prosecute violent drug trafficking organizations like Trinidad in order to keep the Reading community safe.”

“We appreciate the partnership between the Berks County District Attorney’s Office and the United States Attorney’s office of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in the prosecution of this violent Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO),” said Berks County District Attorney Adams. “Today’s verdict indicates a very successful prosecution of this violent DTO that created mayhem in our community. These convictions indicate that the jury has held the leaders of this organization responsible for their acts of violence and drug trafficking, and as a result they will never be a threat to our community again.”

“These are three violent, dangerous men who terrorized the Reading area for years, trafficking deadly drugs and committing multiple murders,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “The Trinidad organization’s actions destroyed families and had a devastating effect on the community’s public safety and quality of life. This case underscores how the FBI and our law enforcement partners are working together to target and dismantle the violent drug gangs wreaking so much havoc, just to make money and a name for themselves on the street. I want to thank the Reading Police Department and the Berks County District Attorney's Office, in addition to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania – for all the time, work, and resources they put into this investigation, resulting in today’s convictions.”

12 defendants charged in the investigation previously pleaded guilty to federal or state charges and are awaiting sentencing. Co-defendants Mariela Alvarado and Owen Malave-Medina were sentenced to 168 months and 90 months in prison, respectively.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Berks County District Attorney’s Office, the Berks County Detectives, and the Reading Police Department, with assistance from the Pennsylvania State Police and the Montgomery County Detectives, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly A. Lewis Fallenstein, Special Assistant United States Attorney Rosalynda M. Michetti, and Assistant United States Attorney Vineet Gauri.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Robert Dean Caesar, 60, of Oxford, PA, was sentenced to 100 years in prison and lifetime supervised release United States District Court Judge Gerald Pappert for multiple child exploitation offenses including producing, transmitting, and collecting child pornography.

In April 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to those child pornography charges detailed in a 2018 Indictment. According to court documents, beginning in 2017, the defendant hired two teenage brothers, then ages 14 and 15, from the Pennsylvania Dutch (or Amish) to perform yard work and other odd jobs at Caesar’s residence in Chester County. During this time, the defendant sexually abused both boys on numerous occasions, and also used a cell phone to take sexually explicit photos of one of them. After the boys disclosed the abuse, a search warrant executed at the defendant’s residence revealed a massive collection of child pornography, amounting to tens of thousands of images and videos, as well as the sexually explicit images he produced of his minor victim during the abuse. The investigation further revealed that Caesar had been assaulting young boys for decades, dating back to the 1980’s.

“This defendant committed unspeakable, horrific acts, abusing unknown numbers of children until he got to these two victims, these brothers, and destroyed their entire lives,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “And for that he will now spend the rest of his life behind bars. It is our duty to protect the most vulnerable members of society, and together with our law enforcement partners we will continue to uphold that duty by bringing to justice anybody who preys upon minor children.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the Pennsylvania State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Erica Kivitz and Kelly Harrell.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Eduardo Castelan-Prado, 39, of Leonia, NJ, and Jose Ochoa, 32, of Moreno Valley, CA, were both sentenced to 40 years in prison, and five years of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III, for their convictions on kidnapping charges arising from the abduction of a teenage victim from Northeast Philadelphia to New Jersey in June 2021.

In June 2022, the defendants were convicted after trial of charges of conspiracy to commit kidnapping and kidnapping in connection with their actions to kidnap a 17-year-old in the parking lot of a restaurant in Philadelphia, which was the teen’s place of employment, after his shift ended. Evidence presented at trial showed that on June 14, 2021, Castelan-Prado, Ochoa, and a third co-conspirator transported the victim to a residence in New Jersey, where they held him at gunpoint while making ransom demands of $500,000 to his parents. The FBI and the Philadelphia Police Department were able to determine the victim’s location by tracing the ransom calls, and in the early morning hours of June 16, 2021, an FBI SWAT team executed a search warrant at an apartment complex in Leonia, New Jersey, rescued the victim, and arrested the defendants.

“The events of this case are every parent’s worst nightmare: someone with ill intentions forcefully taking their child. These defendants kidnapped a teenager in an effort to extort money, a crime for which they have now been convicted and each sentenced to spend 40 years in prison,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As was the case here, our investigators and prosecutors will work quickly and tirelessly to identify, locate and charge anyone who attempts this type of violent crime in our district.”

“Ochoa and Castelan-Prado grabbed a teenage boy off the street to use as a human bargaining chip,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “They sought to extort his parents, demanding half a million dollars for their child’s survival and safe return. Fortunately, this despicable ploy for money was disrupted and the victim recovered by the FBI and our partners. Today’s sentences ensure the men behind this violent crime will be held accountable for what they’ve done and prevented from so terrorizing anyone else’s family.”

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

The case was investigated by the FBI Philadelphia and FBI Newark, and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Justin Oshana and Kate Shulman.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Jaheym Newsome, 19, of Philadelphia, PA, was arrested and charged by Superseding Indictment with carjacking, attempted carjacking, and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, all in connection with two carjacking incidents which occurred in Northeast Philadelphia and South Philadelphia on December 22, 2021. After being arrested by the United States Marshals Service, the defendant made his initial appearance on these charges and has been detained pending trial.

As detailed in the Criminal Complaints previously filed in this case, Newsome and two co-defendants, Dayon Hackett, 19, and Taquan Mershon, 19, both also of Philadelphia, PA, allegedly approached a man sitting in his car in Northeast Philadelphia preparing to go to work in the early morning hours on that day in December 2021. The defendants ordered the victim out of his car, carjacked him at gunpoint, and fled the area. Mershon then allegedly drove the carjacked vehicle to South Philadelphia, where Hackett and Newsome both approached a different man who was also sitting in his car waiting for a parking spot to open up after he got home from work. According to the Criminal Complaints, Hackett and Newsome opened the door to that vehicle and attempted to pull the victim out of the car. Upon observing a firearm on the victim’s lap, Hackett and Newsome opened fire on the victim, striking him multiple times. The victim returned fire and Hackett was struck by multiple rounds. Hackett and Newsome then returned to the waiting vehicle that Mershon was driving and got inside. Mershon drove to a nearby hospital, and Mershon and Newsome carried Hackett into the hospital, dropped him on the floor of the emergency room, and fled the area in the vehicle they carjacked in Northeast Philadelphia earlier that morning. Hackett was identified that same morning as a suspect in the South Philadelphia attempted carjacking and taken into custody. After a lengthy investigation, ATF investigators identified Newsome and Mershon as the other two suspects in the incidents.

Hackett was arrested by the Philadelphia Police Department on December 22, 2021, and charged by Criminal Complaint on February 25, 2022, as previously announced in a seperate press release, and Mershon was charged by Criminal Complaint on August 10, 2022, and arrested by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives on August 16, 2022, both with offenses arising from the same two carjacking incidents. All three individuals were charged in a Superseding Indictment that was returned on September 13, 2022. Hackett and Mershon were previously detained pending trial.

“Our Office is committed to supporting the Philadelphia Police Department in its work to investigate and deter violent crime, which includes our partnership on the joint carjacking task force,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “If you commit a violent offense like a gunpoint carjacking, federal authorities will soon be knocking at your door.”

“ATF’s mission is straightforward – fighting violent crime,” said Eric Degree, acting Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “As this indictment alleges, it does not get any more violent than these armed carjackings, in which a firearm was discharged.  ATF will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners to aggressively pursue these violent offenders and make our streets safer.”

The swift action to investigate and federally charge these defendants is the result of the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, which is comprised of members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crime Unit; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Philadelphia Police Department. The goal of the Taskforce is to stem the wave of armed carjackings and violent crimes through investigative and enforcement techniques meant to identify and refer for federal prosecution all who terrorize innocent victims through commission of these offenses within Philadelphia and surrounding areas.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Eckert.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Bonnie Sweeten, 51, recently of Delanco, NJ, was charged by Information with two counts of wire fraud related to her scheme to steal from her former employer by forging checks and making fraudulent purchases with the company credit card.

According to the Information, in September 2017, the defendant was hired as a bookkeeper for a Doylestown-based excavating company because the president of the company had known her for many years. As the bookkeeper, Sweeten had access to company bank accounts, company checkbooks, the company mail, and other sensitive personal information belonging to the president and to the company. The defendant allegedly abused the trust of the president of the company by using her position to steal company funds: using her access to the company’s checking account to issue dozens of company checks to herself; using her access to the company mail to steal checks that had been mailed to the company, which she then fraudulently endorsed over to herself; and using her access to the company credit card to make tens of thousands of dollars of personal purchases.

“As an employee of the company, Bonnie Sweeten was well aware of her obligation to act in the best interest of the company, but instead she allegedly chose to take advantage of the opportunity offered to her to work as a bookkeeper for this company,” said U.S. Attorney Romero.

“Bonnie Sweeten’s alleged actions are the epitome of biting the hand that feeds you,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Defrauding one’s employer is both a bad career move and a federal crime, for which violators must be held accountable.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Mannion.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Nicholas Kirby, 45, of Philadelphia, PA, was arrested and charged by Indictment with multiple firearms and narcotics offenses related to his trafficking in those items. Specifically, the defendant is charged with one count of dealing in firearms without a license, four counts of possession of a firearm by a felon, five counts of distribution of fentanyl, and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

The Indictment alleges that Kirby illegally sold five semiautomatic rifles in separate instances between January 25 through March 14, 2022. The Indictment further alleges that the defendant had been previously convicted of a felony before he possessed each of the firearms that he sold to others. Finally, the Indictment alleges that Kirby distributed fentanyl on five separate occasions between February 2, 2022, and March 10, 2022, and was found in possession of fentanyl with the intent to distribute it on March 14, 2022.

“Our Office is committed to prosecuting those who commit violent crimes including illegally trafficking firearms and narcotics like fentanyl, both potentially lethal commodities,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “In this case, a Nicholas Kirby allegedly illegally possessed and sold firearms, and possessed and distributed fentanyl, which presents a clear danger to our community which is struggling under a surge of violent gun crime and overdose deaths.”

“This investigation is the result of law enforcement partners coming together for a common goal – to investigate individuals who illegally possess firearms,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division. “As the indictment alleges, this defendant could have endangered the lives of countless citizens by illegally putting guns onto our already gun-flooded streets. This indictment is the result of the hard work of our investigators, our partners with the DEA, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

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

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 165 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas M. Zaleski.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Christian Dunbar, 42, of Philadelphia, PA, the former Philadelphia City Treasurer, pleaded guilty in front of United States District Court Judge Cynthia M. Rufe to procurement of citizenship unlawfully and through multiple false statements; submitting false citizenship papers; and failure to file tax returns, all in connection with false statements and altered documents he submitted as part of his application to become a U.S. citizen, and failing to file his federal tax returns in three separate years.

In May 2021, the defendant was charged by Superseding Indictment with multiple counts of filing a false income tax return and failure to file tax returns. Earlier, in September 2020, Dunbar was charged in a 14-count Indictment, charging embezzlement by a bank employee, procurement of naturalization through a false statement, procurement of naturalization unlawfully, obtaining false citizenship papers, and making false statements in support of naturalization.

During the hearing, the defendant admitted to procuring U.S. citizenship fraudulently by providing false information about where and with whom he was living, where his child was residing, and submitting a false lease and a false W-2 tax form to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Further, Dunbar admitted to not filing his personal income tax returns for tax years 2015, 2016, and 2019 (during the last of which he was serving as the Philadelphia City Treasurer).   

“Christian Dunbar’s conduct in this case demonstrates a shocking level of misconduct for anyone, let alone a senior official with the City of Philadelphia whose job it was to oversee the City’s fiscal stability,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate these types of complicated public corruption cases, and hold public officials accountable.”

“Christian Dunbar fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship, building his life and career here on a foundation of lies,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “It’s a sad irony that such a dishonest person wound up City Treasurer, a key position of public trust. Corruption like this corrodes people’s faith in government, which is why the FBI works so hard to hold crooked public officials accountable.”

“Christian Dunbar violated federal tax laws when he failed to file his tax returns, even though he was required, by law, to file,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Tax crimes like this will not go undetected thanks to the tireless hard work of IRS-CI Special Agents. We will continue to focus our investigative efforts on individuals who choose to ignore their legal duty to accurately file and pay their taxes.”

“HSI Philadelphia special agents worked diligently with our partners in the FBI and IRS to ensure Mr. Dunbar is held responsible for his actions,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of HSI’s Philadelphia office. “HSI’s mission is to investigate crimes regardless of the perpetrator’s position, official title or economic status. This investigation underscores the importance of how collaboration and teamwork among federal agencies leads to accountability for crimes committed by those who seek to exploit vulnerabilities in our systems.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations, and Homeland Security Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josh A. Davison.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Donna Laansma, 58, of Fairless Hills, PA, was sentenced to three years in prison, three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay full restitution by United States District Court Judge Michael M. Baylson for her scheme to embezzle over $1.8 million from her former employer, and for failing to report these fraudulently obtained earnings to the IRS.

In February 2022, the defendant was charged by Information with wire fraud and tax evasion in connection with this scheme. At the time of the charged conduct, Laansma was the Financial Controller of Astea, a global management software company based in Horsham, PA, and managed the company’s finances worldwide. According to court documents, Laansma obtained a corporate credit card that she kept hidden from senior management. Between November 2014 and November 2020, the defendant used this secret card to spend over $1.8 million on personal expenditures such as her son’s college tuition, monthly payments on her personal bank accounts, vacations, shoes, groceries, furniture, and gift cards. She also utilized her position as Financial Controller to pay down the corporate card bills, falsely recording these payments as legitimate business expenses in company books. The secret corporate credit card was discovered in 2020, after Astea was acquired by another global enterprise software company. Laansma, who was a Certified Public Accountant and familiar with the tax code, failed to report her extra, fraudulently obtained income as earnings on her tax forms.

“Donna Laansma cheated her former employer out of nearly two million dollars, and covered her tracks to hide her fraud,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Instead of doing the right thing and performing her job honestly as the company’s controller, she chose the greedy path. Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect innocent individuals and businesses from being victimized by financial fraud.”

“For years, Donna Laansma stole from her employer and omitted her earnings on her tax returns, said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Today she has been held accountable for her actions. The sentence she received today is a costly reminder that engaging in such criminal behavior will result in dire consequences such as a loss of liberty and being branded a felon for life.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Jeanette Kang.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Sam Wolo, 21, of Philadelphia, PA; Bruno Nyanue, 20, also of Philadelphia, PA; and Gransae Manue, 20, of Clifton Heights, PA; were arrested and charged by Indictment with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, conspiracy to commit mail theft, possession of stolen mail, and robbery of a postal carrier. The charges arise from the defendants’ alleged schemes to steal checks from the United States mail, and to then fraudulently alter and deposit the stolen checks.

The Indictment specifically alleges that, on December 22, 2021, Wolo, Nyanue, and Manue forcibly robbed a U.S. Postal Service (USPS) letter carrier of his Arrow Key, a USPS key used by letter carriers to access USPS blue collection boxes along their routes. The Arrow Key stolen by Wolo, Nyanue, and Manue opened USPS collection boxes in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, which the defendants used repeatedly to steal mail from boxes in that area.

As alleged in the Indictment, between December 2021 and February 2022, the co-conspirators “washed” and altered checks they stole from the mail that belonged to victims who had mailed checks in Drexel Hill. The defendants altered the stolen checks to make them payable to third parties, often in amounts greater than the checks’ original value, without the victims’ knowledge or consent. As part of the scheme, the defendants deposited the fraudulently washed and altered checks into those third-party accounts, and in at least some instances, withdrew some of the fraudulently deposited funds. The Indictment further alleges that approximately 370 stolen checks and nine stolen money orders were recovered from defendant Wolo’s apartment. The Arrow Key stolen by the defendants from the USPS letter carrier in Drexel Hill, as well as two stolen checks and two money orders, were also recovered from defendant Wolo’s vehicle. Altogether, the value of stolen checks and money orders recovered from defendant Wolo’s apartment and car totaled more than $171,000.

“The United States Postal Service provides an essential service to nearly every American, often conveying income, bills and expenses which are the basis of many livelihoods,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “If you choose to tamper with or steal U.S. mail for any reason, you can be assured that the federal government will conduct an intensive investigation and aggressive prosecution, as we intend to in this case.”

“People continue to use and rely on the U.S. Mail to pay bills, conduct business, send letters and cards, and send and receive goods, among other things,” said Raimundo Marreo, Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “They should be able do these things without fear that their mail will be stolen. Investigating mail theft and violence against mail carriers are core missions of the Postal Inspection Service and we will work tirelessly, with our partners in local law enforcement and in state and federal prosecutors offices, to investigate and prosecute individuals who commit violence against Postal employees and who steal the mail. I want to thank the United States Attorney’s Office and investigators from the Upper Darby Police Department for their help in investigating and prosecuting this case against these three individuals.”

If convicted, defendant Wolo faces a maximum of 236 years in prison, defendant Nyanue faces a maximum of 64 years in prison, and defendant Manue faces a maximum of 172 years in prison. All three defendants could face fines of at least $3 million, with defendant Wolo facing a possible fine of up to $8.5 million.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Upper Darby Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Eileen Castilla Geiger.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Mitchell Spivack, 63, of Collegeville, PA, was sentenced to three years and six months in prison, two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $451,328 restitution and to forfeit $116,000 by United States District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III, for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and healthcare fraud. These charges were the result of a joint investigation between the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General.

In June 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to a Criminal Information charging him with these offenses. According to the charging documents, Spivack owned Verree Pharmacy, a small neighborhood pharmacy located in the Fox Chase section of Philadelphia, and was the pharmacist in charge for more than thirty years. During that time in business, Spivack and his coconspirators allegedly cultivated Verree’s reputation as a “no questions asked” pharmacy for oxycodone and other dangerous and addictive opioid drugs. By 2016, Verree was the largest purchaser of oxycodone among retail pharmacies in the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In furtherance of the conspiracy, Spivack and his coconspirators filled prescriptions for wholesale quantities of high-dose oxycodone despite obvious alterations to the prescriptions and other red flags indicating that the drugs were not for a legitimate medical purpose. In addition, Spivack and other employees of Verree submitted entirely fraudulent claims to health care benefit programs for prescription drugs not dispensed. These drugs were designated in patient profiles as “BBDF” which was an acronym for “Bill But Don’t Fill.” From 2013 through 2019, Medicare and other insurers paid over $450,000 for these bogus claims.

In August 2022, U.S. Attorney Romero announced that the United States filed a civil judgment with Philadelphia-based Spivack, Inc., previously operating under the name Verree Pharmacy, and defendant Spivack, to resolve allegations similar to the criminal charges. The pharmacy and Spivack have agreed to pay over $4.1 million to resolve their civil liability under the Controlled Substances Act, False Claims Act, and forfeiture. The judgment also permanently bans them from ever dispensing controlled substances in the future.

“Pharmacies and pharmacists engage in the deepest violation of the community’s trust when they exploit their access to opioids and other controlled substances and illegally dispense the drugs for their own financial gain,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “It is even more disturbing when pharmacists take advantage of their position of trust by fraudulently billing Medicare and other federal health care programs. Our Office will use every resource it has to pursue and hold these individuals accountable, including criminal charges and civil penalties, as was the case here.”

“Mitchell Spivack filled prescriptions outside of medical standards for the highly addictive drug oxycodone, adding fuel to the fire of a crisis that kills 14 Pennsylvanians every day,” said Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “Pharmacies and medical professionals have a responsibility under the law to dispense these drugs only when appropriate. Nothing will bring back the lives we’ve lost to this epidemic, but today’s sentence holds Spivack, and Verree pharmacy, accountable for their actions.” 

If the public has any information regarding health care fraud allegation, individuals should contact the HHS-OIG hotline at 800-HHS-TIPS.

The criminal case was investigated by the Philadelphia Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration, HHS-OIG, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General Bureau of Narcotics Investigation, and the Pennsylvania Department of State’s Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation. The criminal case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney M. Beth Leahy and Special Assistant United States Attorney Linda Montag, who was specially designated by the PA OAG. The civil case is being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Sarah Grieb and Anthony D. Scicchitano.  

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that so far this year, the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania has charged no less than a dozen cases involving Social Security fraud, either by Information or Indictment, with nine of those defendants pleading guilty to those charges. The charges are the result of a concerted effort to investigate, prosecute and deter theft of government funds, primarily by way of stealing the Social Security payments of a deceased beneficiary. Altogether, the fraud loss amount in these cases totals nearly $1 million.

Defendants charged and their status are:

• Sloan Carter, 59, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on August 2, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on September 7, 2022;
• Marcus Ecks, 38, of Langhorne, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on June 28, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on September 8, 2022;
• Anthony Percell, 54, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Indictment on August 9, 2022, with social security fraud, passport fraud, identity theft, and related charges; scheduled for trial early next year;
• Angel Guilbe, Jr., 53, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on August 17, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on September 19, 2022;
• Stephanie Rudnick, 52, of Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on May 19, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on June 7, 2022;
• Lilian Rogers, 58, of Glenolden, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on March 4, 2022, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on April 27, 2022;
• Dana Douglas-Rodriguez, 40, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Indictment on April 6, 2021, with wire fraud and social security fraud; pleaded guilty to social security fraud on May 3, 2022;
• Paulette Tamburro, 55, of Collingswood Heights, New Jersey; charged by Information on December 15, 2021, with theft of government funds; pleaded guilty on May 4, 2022;
• Michael Smith, 62, of Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on September 2, 2022, with theft of government funds;
• Aracelis Quinones-Martinez, 52, of Lebanon, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on August 24, 2022, with theft of government funds;
• Ivan Wallace, 60, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; charged by Indictment on September 16, 2021, with wire fraud and social security fraud; pleaded guilty to social security fraud on September 28, 2022;
• Christopher Miller, 59, of Wernersville, Pennsylvania; charged by Information on September 20, 2022, with theft of government funds.

As an initiative to increase federal Social Security fraud prosecutions, the Social Security Administration (SSA) provides DOJ with attorneys who are sworn in and serve as Special Assistant United States Attorneys (SAUSA) in multiple U.S. Attorney’s Offices throughout the country. The SAUSA’s focus is solely to prosecute Social Security fraud. The goal of this initiative is to increase the number of prosecutions for fraud involving Social Security programs.  

“Social Security benefits are intended to help Americans who have worked hard and need some extra help making ends meet,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Thieves who take these funds fraudulently are taking advantage of American workers and taxpayers who fund these programs. Thanks to our partnership with SSA, our Office has dedicated prosecutors who are making a difference bringing these fraudsters to justice.”

“Our work to protect Social Security programs and taxpayers’ funds from criminals is one of our highest priorities. We will continue to pursue those who seek to defraud SSA, and we rely heavily on the SAUSAs to prosecute Social Security fraud, which is a federal crime,” said Gail S. Ennis, Inspector General for the Social Security Administration. “I thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and SAUSAs Laura Bradbury and Megan Curran for their efforts in prosecuting these cases and holding these persons accountable for their criminal actions.”  

These cases were investigated by the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General, and are being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorneys Laura Bradbury and Megan Curran.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Victor Clayton, 47, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and 10 years of supervised release by United States District Judge R. Barclay Surrick, for sex trafficking of two minors across state lines.

In November 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to two counts of sex trafficking of a minor, and one count of attempted sex trafficking of a minor. The charges arose from Clayton’s trafficking of a 16-year-old minor in at least four local hotels in Philadelphia in early 2018, after which he kept half of the proceeds paid to the minor by sex buyers. He then picked up that victim’s 15-year-old friend and drove both girls to Dunn, North Carolina, with the intention to cause them to engage in prostitution there. While in North Carolina, the defendant sexually assaulted the second minor, according to court papers.

“The crime that this defendant committed is one of the most devastating to victims that our Office prosecutes,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Clayton forced a young person, a minor child, to sell her body for his own greed and financial gain, attempted to do the same to her friend, and did, in fact, assault that girl himself. We will continue to work collectively to investigate these destructive crimes against some of the most vulnerable victims in our community.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Dunn, North Carolina Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle Morgan and Amanda Reinitz.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Amir Harvey, 20, of Philadelphia, PA was arrested and charged by Criminal Complaint with carjacking and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, in connection with a carjacking incident which occurred in Northeast Philadelphia earlier this month.

As detailed in the Criminal Complaint, in the early morning hours of September 19, 2022, Philadelphia police officers respond to a report of a robbery in progress in the 8900 block of Maxwell Place, where the victim reported that her car had just been stolen by an armed individual as she and her teenage daughter were getting ready to leave to go to school. The victim stated that around 6:15 a.m., she started her vehicle using an application on her cell phone. A short time later, she and her daughter exited their house and walked to the car parked in the driveway in front of their home when they were approached by an armed individual, later identified as the defendant, who pointed a black handgun at their heads. The defendant allegedly took the keys to the vehicle out of the victim’s purse and sped away. The victim used the location tracking feature on her cell phone application and informed police, who responded to its location on the 2000 block of Griffith Street, about 2.5 miles from the victim’s residence. Using neighborhood video surveillance footage, investigators traced the movement of the victim’s vehicle and the defendant to a nearby apartment complex.

“Through the Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, we are continuing to investigate, arrest and prosecute those responsible for the spate of carjackings we have seen in Philadelphia in recent months,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As alleged, this defendant threatened the lives of a mother and daughter going about their daily morning routine. Carjacking is not game or a fun pastime, it is a serious federal crime with severe consequences.”

“When the Carjacking Task Force was established several months ago, this is exactly the type of crime we set out to investigate,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “As the Indictment alleges, this is a seriously violent crime with the lives of innocent victims being threatened. ATF and our local, state, and federal partners will continue to collaborate and seek justice for the victims of violent gun crimes like this.”

“While we are grateful that this dangerous individual has been taken into custody, the increase in the number of carjackings seen across our city and nation continues to be disturbing,” said Philadelphia Police Department Commissioner Danielle Outlaw. “Victims of carjackings have been spread across all demographics, and just as alarmingly, the demographics of the offenders have also been the same. Law enforcement refuses to tolerate this criminal behavior; and the PPD, along with our fellow Task Force partners, will not stop until we bring each and every offender to justice.”

The swift action to investigate and federally charge these defendants is the result of the newly formed Philadelphia Carjacking Task Force, which is comprised of members of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crime Unit; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Philadelphia Police Department. The goal of the Taskforce is to stem the wave of armed carjackings and violent crimes through investigative and enforcement techniques meant to identify and refer for federal prosecution all who terrorize innocent victims through commission of these offenses within Philadelphia and surrounding areas.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Eckert.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Rusmaldy Jimenez-Hiciano, 38, of Goose Creek, SC, was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay full restitution of $536,000 and forfeiture of $461,000 by United States District Court Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl for his role in perpetrating a mail fraud scheme to steal high-end electronics from his former employer, Walmart.

In June 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to four counts of mail fraud and admitted in court that he masterminded a scheme to steal and re-sell expensive electronics. In late 2017, the defendant, a long-time employee at Walmart’s Bethlehem, PA, distribution center, devised a plan to defraud the company by hiding certain high-end electronic merchandise when it came into the warehouse on delivery trucks; mailing that merchandise via FedEx to addresses in Allentown controlled by the defendant; selling the stolen goods; and sharing the proceeds with others.

“Jimenez-Hiciano stole hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of goods from his former employer,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Instead of doing the right thing and performing his job honestly, he took advantage of his position and his employer. Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to protect innocent individuals and businesses from being victimized by financial fraud.”

“HSI and our partners in the Pennsylvania State Police and the U.S. Attorney’s office have struck another blow against criminals who use our commercial systems to commit crimes that damage our business infrastructure, slow our delivery systems, and ultimately harm consumers through higher prices,” said William S. Walker, Special Agent in Charge of the HSI Philadelphia office. “Crimes such as organized mail fraud schemes inflict severe and long-reaching damage to American consumers.  Congratulations to the dedicated agents and prosecutors who worked on this investigation.”

The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security – Homeland Security Investigations and the Pennsylvania State Police, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mary E. Crawley.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced today that former U.S. Congressman Michael “Ozzie” Myers, 79, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to 30 months  in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $100,000 in fines, with $10,000 of that due immediately, by United States District Court Judge Paul S. Diamond after pleading guilty to conspiracy to deprive voters of civil rights, bribery, obstruction of justice, falsification of voting records, conspiring to illegally vote in a federal election, and for orchestrating schemes to fraudulently stuff the ballot boxes for specific Democratic candidates in the 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018 Pennsylvania elections. The defendant was immediately remanded into custody following today’s hearing.

In June 2022, the defendant admitted in court to bribing the Judge of Elections for the 39th Ward, 36th Division in South Philadelphia in a fraudulent scheme over several years. Myers admitted to bribing the election official to illegally add votes for certain candidates of their mutual political party in primary elections. Some of these candidates were individuals running for judicial office whose campaigns had hired Myers, and others were candidates for various federal, state, and local elective offices that Myers favored for a variety of reasons. Myers would solicit payments from his clients in the form of cash or checks as “consulting fees,” and then use portions of these funds to pay election officials to tamper with election results.

Myers also admitted to conspiring to commit election fraud with another former Judge of Elections for the 39th Ward, 2nd Division in South Philadelphia. Myers’ accomplice was the de facto Judge of Elections and effectively ran the polling places in her division by installing close associates to serve as members of the Board of Elections. Myers admitted that he gave his accomplice directions to add votes to candidates supported by him, including candidates for judicial office whose campaigns actually hired Myers, and other candidates for various federal, state, and local elective offices preferred by Myers for a variety of reasons.

“Voting is the cornerstone of our democracy. If even one vote has been illegally cast or if the integrity of just one election official is compromised, it diminishes faith in process,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This defendant used his position, knowledge of the process, and connections to fix elections for his preferred candidates, which demonstrates a truly flagrant disregard for the laws which govern our elections. He will now spend 30 months in prison as penalty for his crimes.”

“Protecting the legitimacy of elections is critical to ensuring the public’s trust in the process,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Through his actions, Ozzie Myers pointedly disdained both the will of Philadelphia voters and the rule of law. He’s now a federal felon twice over, heading back behind bars, with time to consider the great consequence of free and fair elections.”   

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Pennsylvania State Police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Richard P. Barrett, Chief of the Criminal Division, and Eric L. Gibson with assistance from Richard C. Pilger, the former Director of Elections Crimes Branch (retired), Criminal Division, Public Integrity Section, U.S. Department of Justice.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Steven Kish, 66, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to three years in prison, three years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $259,019 in forfeiture and $353,488 in restitution by United States District Court Judge C. Darnell Jones. Defendant Kish was the most prolific of the numerous SEPTA managers who participated in a scheme to defraud SEPTA of approximately $900,000.

In January 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to theft from an organization receiving federal funds, money laundering, and wire fraud. From about 2013 through 2019, the defendant and other management-level employees working in SEPTA’s Bridges and Buildings Department (“BBD”), engaged in bribery and theft schemes with two SEPTA vendors. The BBD is responsible for maintaining, repairing, and renovating SEPTA facilities throughout the southeastern Pennsylvania region. To facilitate this work, SEPTA issued “procurement cards” (also known as P-Cards) to management-level employees working in the BBD. The P-Cards, which operate as SEPTA credit cards, are to be used for purchasing items needed for the legitimate work of the BBD.

In about 2013, a codefendant, who was the Senior Director of Maintenance at SEPTA, agreed with two other codefendants, who were SEPTA vendors, to exploit the P-Card system for their mutual benefit. The Senior Director solicited the vendors to provide him with regular cash payments of approximately $1,000 to $2,000 per month. In exchange for those payments, the vendors falsely billed SEPTA through the P-Card system for items that the vendor was not providing to SEPTA. The false charges to SEPTA covered the cash payments, plus a substantial additional amount to generate fraud proceeds for the vendor. As part of the corrupt deals with the vendors, the Senior Director encouraged other BBD managers, including Kish, the Director of Maintenance just below the Senior Director of Maintenance, to use and continue to use the vendors for SEPTA purchases, growing the vendors’ business with SEPTA.

The defendant separately asked both vendors to provide him with personal products and cash with the understanding that the vendors would use the SEPTA P-Cards to fraudulently bill SEPTA for those personal products and cash and generate additional fraud proceeds for the vendors. The total value of those items and the cash was approximately $259,000, resulting in approximately $353,488 in fraudulent billing to SEPTA. In particular, one of the vendors purchased for Kish approximately $215,000 in the form of gold bullion, gold coins, and other precious metals. The purchases included several American Gold Eagle Coins, Gold American Buffalo Coins, South African Gold Krugerrand Coins, Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coins, Royal Canadian Mint Gold Bars, and PAMP Suisse Gold Bars. Kish also obtained from the other vendor thousands of dollars in cash and personal products, such as a gas grill.

Then in June 2019, Kish attempted to conceal the scheme from authorities by having a different SEPTA manager purchase from eBay one of the gold coins (a Canadian Mint Gold Bar for approximately $4,272) that Kish had previously obtained from a vendor as part of the scheme. Kish then provided the coin to the vendor so that he could make it appear that he had purchased that coin for himself.

All of the other codefendants in this case, including the two vendors and other former SEPTA managers, were sentenced earlier this year.

“Philadelphians deserve public employees who do their jobs honestly, without gaming the system to line their own pockets,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “The defendant’s participation in this scheme was extensive, and as one of the highest-level managers in his department, he should have known better than to engage in this level of criminal behavior.”

SEPTA Inspector General, Denise S. Wolf, said: “SEPTA employees are hard-working and dedicated to providing our customers with safe and efficient public transportation. These bad actors were the unfortunate exception, and, through these criminal prosecutions, justice was ultimately served. The SEPTA Office of Inspector General appreciates its partnership with the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office in investigating this matter.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of the SEPTA Office of Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. SEPTA Office of Inspector General (OIG) launched an investigation after its internal auditors detected fraud, and subsequently the OIG shared its findings with the FBI.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Tyree Little, 22, of Philadelphia, PA, pleaded guilty earlier this week, just before trial was scheduled to begin today, to illegally possessing a firearm with an extended magazine.

The charge stems from an incident in July 2021, during a vehicle stop for a traffic violation, when Philadelphia Police Officers observed a firearm with an extended magazine sticking out from under the driver’s seat of the defendant’s car, where the defendant was seated. Little pleaded guilty to possessing that firearm, which he was not able to lawfully possess due to a prior felony conviction for robbery.

The defendant was on state parole for the robbery at the time, and he was also a participant in the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Call-In Program. The PSN Call-In Program is a violence prevention and re-entry initiative coordinated by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, Parole Field Services, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The program, which is part of the Justice Department’s Project Safe Neighborhoods strategy, has been in operation since 2013 and is designed to reduce violent crime and recidivism of individuals returning from state incarceration to the 1st, 3rd, 12th, 16th, 18th, 19th, 22nd, 24th, 25th, 39th Police Districts in Philadelphia. Parolees attend a one-time meeting with law enforcement and community members imploring them refrain from violence and firearms possession. Law enforcement officials deliver a clear message of deterrence, warning parolees that if they continue to commit crime, they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Following this meeting, parolees receive connections to resources to assist with their re-entry process into general society.

“Our Office is invested in the successful re-entry of previously convicted individuals to our communities for many reasons, chief among them is ensuring public safety,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Once their debt to society has been paid and their sentence served, previously convicted individuals often require extra support and services to become productive citizens, which is why the PSN Call-In Program exists. But participants are made aware that if they don’t adhere to the terms of the program including refraining from committing additional crimes, they will face serious federal charges as a result.”

“ATF is determined to make our streets safer by working with our local, state, and federal partners,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “We are committed to identifying and prosecuting armed criminals, especially repeat offenders, and remove them from our communities.” 

“The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections and the Parole Field Services Department in particular sincerely appreciate the support and cooperation the U.S. Attorney’s Office has invested in this matter as well as in our ongoing partnership,” said Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Acting Secretary George Little. “Continued communication and collaboration between all levels of law enforcement is essential to building stronger, safer communities.”

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department Highway Patrol, and is being prosecuted by AUSA Jeanine Linehan, Chief of the Violent Crimes Unit, and Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Shulman.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Mark Houck, 48, of Kintnersville, PA, was charged by Indictment with a violation of the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which makes it a federal crime to use force with the intent to injure, intimidate, and interfere with anyone because that person is a provider of reproductive health care. The defendant was arrested and made his initial appearance in federal court on these charges earlier today.

According to court documents, the defendant is alleged to have twice assaulted a man because he was a volunteer reproductive health care clinic escort. The charges stem from two separate incidents both on October 13, 2021, which occurred at the Planned Parenthood Elizabeth Blackwell Health Center on Locust Street in Philadelphia, where Houck allegedly assaulted the victim, a 72-year-old man, identified in the Indictment as “B.L.,” because B.L. was a volunteer escort at the reproductive health care clinic. In the first incident, B.L. was attempting to escort two patients exiting the clinic, when the defendant forcefully shoved B.L. to the ground. In the second incident, the defendant verbally confronted B.L. and forcefully shoved B.L. to the ground in front of the Planned Parenthood center, causing injuries to B.L. that required medical attention.

“Assault is always a serious offense, and under the FACE Act, if the victim is targeted because of their association with a reproductive healthcare clinic, it is a federal crime,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Our Office and the Department of Justice are committed to prosecuting crimes which threaten the safety and rights of all individuals.”

“Put simply, violence is never the answer,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Philadelphia Division. “Violating the FACE Act by committing a physical assault is a serious crime for which the FBI will work to hold offenders accountable.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 11 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and fines of up to $350,000.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anita Eve and DOJ Trial Attorney Sanjay Patel of the Civil Rights Division.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Bruce Minor, 46, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to two years in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $462,256 restitution and forfeit the same amount by United States District Court Judge Chad F. Kenney for his scheme to embezzle money from his former employer, the Philadelphia Veterans’ Affairs Medical Center (VAMC).

In May 2022, the defendant pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government funds. The charge arose from his theft of approximately $487,000 in Veterans Affairs travel reimbursement funds, which he helped administer as part of his official duties as a travel clerk. In order to perpetrate the theft, Minor created fraudulent travel reimbursement claims in the names of at least three other VAMC employees and then diverted the fraudulently obtained funds into bank accounts he controlled. According to court documents, in an email to VAMC management, the defendant admitted to stealing approximately $13,000 in travel funds, though subsequent investigation showed that he stole upwards of $487,000 between December 2015 and September 2019.

“Americans – and especially the men and women who have served in uniform – deserve public employees who do their jobs honestly and with integrity,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “This defendant selfishly took advantage of his position with the VA to commit fraud, cheating both the veterans who rely on VA programs and the taxpayers who fund those services.”

“This defendant deceitfully used his position at VA to steal funds to which he was not entitled,” said Special Agent in Charge Christopher F. Algieri of the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General’s Northeast Field Office. “This illegal conduct compromises the integrity of VA programs and wastes funds that could otherwise be used for the benefit of our nation’s veterans. The VA OIG thanks the US Attorney’s Office for its commitment throughout this investigation.”

The case was investigated by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher Diviny.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Duane Taylor, 47, of Brooklyn, New York, was charged by Indictment with kidnapping after abducting a minor child from her home in Reading, Pennsylvania, and transporting the child to his residence last month. The defendant made his initial appearance in federal court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on these charges earlier today.

According to court documents, on the morning of August 31, 2022, City of Reading Police officers responded to the victim’s home when the child’s mother reported her missing from her bedroom, where she had last seen her around 10:30 p.m. the evening prior before going to bed. After searching for the child, her mother observed the back door of her residence was wide open, and law enforcement found the chain lock on that door was broken. Investigators reviewed video surveillance footage from the home’s security system, which showed a person entering the living room area at approximately 2:00 a.m., and proceeding to the stairs leading to the second floor. A short time later, the victim is seen walking down those stairs and through the living room, followed by the person who was later identified as the defendant, whom the victim’s mother also stated was her former boyfriend. Reading investigators contacted the New York City Police Department, who traced the defendant to his residence in Brooklyn, but did not locate the victim there. The victim was located later that day when a citizen called 911 to report a child alone and asking for help because she had been kidnapped from Pennsylvania.

“On August 31, 2022, millions of people received notification of an Amber Alert for a missing child from Reading, PA. Thanks to the hard work of investigators in Pennsylvania and New York City, the alleged kidnapper was swiftly tracked down and the child was found and reunited with her mother,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “As any parent can understand, this was a terrifying situation for this family, and this defendant will now appear in federal court to answer to these charges.”

“Imagine one morning finding your home’s door broken open and your child’s bed empty,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “It’s a parent’s worst nightmare come true. We’re so thankful that this young victim was recovered safely, and for the great collaboration by law enforcement partners in locating and arresting her alleged abductor. Anyone who would harm a child like this is simply depraved and must be held accountable.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of life in prison.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Reading Police Department, and the New York City Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sherri A. Stephan.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Ernest Pressley, 42, of Philadelphia, PA, pleaded guilty before United States District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno to one count of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire and four counts of use of interstate commerce facilities in the commission of murder-for-hire, in connection with Pressley’s role in murdering four victims in Philadelphia between 2017 and 2018, all in exchange for money. As part of the guilty plea, the defendant also admitted to his role in the killing of two other victims in 2016 and 2017, and the attempted murder of a woman in 2018.  Charging documents and court filings detailing these crimes were unsealed today in connection with the plea hearing.

In late 2018, the Philadelphia Police Department joined with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to investigate Pressley in connection with the murder of a victim known as S.S., who was shot to death in the parking lot of a Philadelphia apartment complex near 7400 Malvern Avenue in the early morning hours of September 1, 2018. The defendant was captured on video surveillance footage near the scene and in footage retrieved from a bar in Philadelphia the evening before, when he was with S.S. and several other men. Pressley was arrested in connection with this crime on September 7, 2018.

The ensuing investigation revealed that Pressley was responsible for other murders in Philadelphia, including the killings of two tow truck drivers who worked for the business A. Bob’s Towing on January 12 and 13, 2017. The defendant agreed to kill a tow truck driver known as K.F. in exchange for money, in order to prevent K.F. from testifying as a witness at an assault trial in Philadelphia. In an effort to distract law enforcement from the true motivation for K.F.’s murder and to make it appear as though it was connected to a feud between rival tow truck companies, Pressley selected at random one of K.F.’s co-workers, a victim known as E.R., and shot him to death as he left work on January 12, 2017, near 4500 Melrose Street. The next day, Pressley approached K.F. as he left his home and entered his tow truck, which was being driven by a co-worker, at which time Pressley opened fire, fatally striking K.F. and injuring his co-worker, who was shot several times in his lower body.   

As the investigation developed further, Pressley was also identified as the person who shot a victim known as M.R. to death in Philadelphia on January 11, 2017, near the intersection of East Sharpnack and Baldwin Streets, while M.R. worked on his vehicle at a garage in the area. 

During the guilty plea allocution before Judge Robreno earlier today, Pressley admitted that he murdered M.R., E.R., K.F., and S.S., in exchange for money and at the direction of a drug trafficker. Around the time of each crime, Pressley used his cellular phone to communicate with his co-conspirator to plan how and when each murder would be carried out. His use of a cell phone to facilitate each of the killings is a federal offense. Pressley’s conviction by way of his guilty plea carries a mandatory life sentence in prison. 

Further, Pressley admitted to shooting a victim known as C.Y. to death on July 19, 2016, as C.Y. sat on the porch of a residence near 1500 West Olney Avenue in Philadelphia. The defendant also admitted to his role in providing the location of a man he knew was wanted dead by a Philadelphia drug trafficker, which later resulted in the death of a victim known as Y.H., who was killed as the result of mistaken identity near the intersection of 56th Street and Ithan Street on July 24, 2018. Finally, Pressley admitted that he attempted to kill a woman when he shot her in the arm as she arrived at her Philadelphia home on North Woodstock Street on July 9, 2018. While the woman survived a gunshot wound, she later discovered that her home had been ransacked and several items were stolen, including money and jewelry. Several hours later, Pressley was identified as having sold a Rolex watch belonging to the woman at a Philadelphia pawn shop. 

“By his own admission, Ernest Pressley is an incredibly dangerous individual with no qualms about accepting money to calculatedly and cold-bloodedly murder anyone,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “With today’s guilty plea and thanks to the dedicated efforts of the investigators on this case, this defendant will now spend the rest of his life behind bars for these heinous crimes.”

“We’ve long known that much of Philadelphia’s violent crime is committed by a discrete group of chronic offenders,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Ernest Pressley is a case in point. Today, he’s admitted to murdering six people and trying to kill a seventh. He’s an obvious menace with zero respect for human life and the city is unequivocally safer with him behind bars. The FBI and Philadelphia Police Department are working in lockstep and bringing all our resources to bear, as we home in on these violent criminals leaving bodies in their wake.” 

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Philadelphia Police Department, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin Ashenfelter.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Taylor Thompson, 27; Tiana Fairfax, 29, both of Philadelphia, PA, and Theodore Robinson, 29, of Upper Darby, PA, were arrested and charged by Indictment with seven counts of wire fraud in connection with their scheme to defraud their employer, a national airline carrier, out of ticket fare revenue by recruiting customers to book inexpensive flights which they didn’t intend to use, upgrading those customers to more expensive flights which the customers actually wanted by using supervisors’ computer access codes, and then charging the customers a ‘commission’ and pocketing that money rather than charging the customer the full price of the upgraded flight.

The Indictment alleges that in 2017 and 2018, defendant Thompson was an employee in a supervisory role with a major U.S. airline headquartered in Florida, and defendants Fairfax and Robinson worked as customer service agents with the same airline. In those jobs, the defendants had access to the airline’s computerized reservation system and were able to book flight reservations; supervisors like Thompson had the ability to use a special code at their discretion to make changes in the reservation system without charging customers the additional costs associated with modified reservations. In general, if a passenger changed their itinerary, airline policy required that the passenger pay the full price of the modified itinerary, which was often more expensive than the itinerary that the passenger originally booked. Although supervisors had the ability to modify a reservation without assessing those charges, under Airline policy, those charges were only to be waived under extenuating circumstances, such as a death in the passenger's family.

In March 2018, Thompson allegedly approached another employee and co-schemer about participating in a scheme to skim money from airline fares, and asked that employee for access to their Cash App account in order to receive payments directly from customers. Thompson made money from the scheme by charging customers for whom she booked and modified a flight reservation more for the flight than the price of the original itinerary (that is, the amount that was paid to the airline), but less than the true cost of the new, modified itinerary. The defendant retained the additional amount paid to her by the customer as a commission for her services. Defendants Fairfax and Robinson allegedly joined the scheme by modifying flight reservations for customers without charging them the difference in cost by utilizing Thompson’s supervisory airline credentials. In 2018, when Thompson was terminated by the airline, a second co-schemer was approached to join the scheme in order to utilize their supervisory credentials in order to modify flight reservations.

According to the Indictment, between December 2017 and August 2018, all three defendants along with the two co-schemers modified more than 1,700 flight reservations without compensating the airline for the increased cost of those modified reservations, for a total loss to the airline of more than $283,000.

“As alleged, these defendants used access and privileges granted by virtue of their employment to cheat the airline reservation system and skim money off the top for themselves,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute fraud schemes wherever they occur.”

“Supplementing your paycheck by scamming your employer is a criminally bad career move,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “Fraud is never the ticket to lasting financial gain, as these defendants have now discovered. Instead, it’s landed them in court to answer for their alleged actions. The FBI stands ready to investigate financial crimes wherever they may occur.”   

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica Rice.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Rafael Robinson, 35, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced to seventeen years and six months in prison, ten years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $459,000 restitution by United States District Judge C. Darnell Jones II, for sex trafficking of an adult by force.

The defendant is the fourth and final member of a brutal sex trafficking ring in West Philadelphia to be sentenced. According to court documents, the four defendants ran a strip club, known as “Club Passions,” and a brothel, known as “Passionate Touch,” at a leased property in the Mill Creek section of West Philadelphia. Along with his three co-defendants, the defendant engaged in acts of force, threats, fraud and coercion to cause a young woman referenced as “Person 1” in the second Superseding Indictment to engage in prostitution over the course of approximately three years, including subjecting her to repeated acts of sadistic torture.

The defendant and his co-defendant, Kevino Graham, were convicted by a jury on February 5, 2016. Graham was convicted of two counts of sex trafficking by force, and attempted sex trafficking by force, and was sentenced to 100 years in prison. Co-defendant Brian Wright pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 21 years and ten months in prison. Co-defendant Renato Teixeira pleaded guilty and was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison.

“The crimes committed in this case were truly horrific,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “And while the victims may never fully recover from the crimes committed against them, they can rest assured that these four perpetrators have now been brought to justice. Our Office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners at all levels to relentlessly investigate and prosecute human trafficking crimes.”

“The actions of Rafael Robinson and his co-defendants were unconscionable,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “While it’s gratifying to see the last member of this sex trafficking ring handed a lengthy term, no sentence can make up for the terrible physical and emotional harm these men inflicted. We hope those they victimized continue to heal with each new day that passes. Combatting sex trafficking remains squarely in the FBI’s sights, as we work to free victims from such cruel and calculating exploitation and to hold accountable the ruthless criminals who would engage in such heinous acts.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Philadelphia Police Department Special Victims Unit and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Morgan.

PHILADELPHIA –United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Saifuddin Hasan, 21, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Indictment with three counts of Hobbs Act Robbery in connection with three armed robberies which all occurred on the same night in December 2021, in Montgomery County and Philadelphia.

The Indictment alleges that on the night of December 5, 2021, the defendant entered a 7-Eleven convenience store on City Avenue in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, and brandished a firearm as he committed his first robbery. Then, according to the Indictment, Hasan drove east bound to a Lukoil gas station on City Avenue and committed his second armed robbery. The defendant capped off his night of violence by continuing in his vehicle eastbound on Route 1 into the Hunting Park section of North Philadelphia and allegedly committed an armed robbery of a 7-Eleven convenience store at Wyoming and Rising Sun Avenues. Philadelphia police officers pursued and arrested Hasan after this third armed robbery.

“As alleged, this defendant brandished a firearm in the faces of convenience store and gas station employees simply doing their jobs,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “The charges in this Indictment demonstrate that our Office is committed to investigating and prosecuting violent crime.”

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

The case was investigated and charged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael R. Miller and Special Assistant United States Attorney Shannon Zabel.  

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Northeast Discount Pharmacy will pay $200,000 to resolve allegations that it failed to comply with various record-keeping requirements for controlled substances.

Northeast Discount Pharmacy, a Philadelphia pharmacy wholly owned by pharmacist Patrick Assifuah, is a registered retail pharmacy authorized to purchase and dispense Schedule II-V controlled substances. The settlement announced today resolves allegations that between April 2018 and January 2021, Northeast Discount Pharmacy failed to maintain complete and accurate electronic records of controlled substances, and to prepare appropriate Drug Enforcement Administration forms. For example, the settlement resolves allegations that Northeast Discount Pharmacy failed to maintain appropriate inventories of controlled substances including Endocet 10/235mg (Percocet 10/325mg and Oxycodone 10/325mg), Oxycodone 5mg, Oxycodone 15 mg, and Oxycodone 30mg.

In addition to the $200,000 penalty, Northeast Discount Pharmacy is also now subject to a number of monitoring requirements, including reporting of controlled substance purchasing, dispensing, and prescribing to the Drug Enforcement Administration, as well as sharing Standard Operating Procedures pertaining to all aspects of purchasing, storing, and distributing controlled substances.

“Controlled substances, especially opioids, pose extraordinary risks to our communities in this district,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “When pharmacies are granted the privilege of purchasing controlled substances, they also accept the significant responsibility of ensuring that controlled substances are used for a legitimate medical purpose and generating the records necessary for accountability and transparency. When this does not happen, we will work with our law enforcement partners, use all available enforcement tools, and hold these pharmacies responsible.”

“Pharmacies are entrusted with the dispensing of powerful prescription painkillers such as oxycodone and Percocet. With that responsibility comes the obligation to properly safeguard and account for these same drugs,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division.  “Civil settlements and the monitoring requirements imposed against Northeast Discount Pharmacy help to ensure that these safeguards are met.” 

This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Philadelphia Field Division. For the United States Attorney’s Office, Assistant United States Attorney Deborah W. Frey and former Assistant United States Attorney P.J. Koob handled the investigation and settlement.

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

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Luis Perez Rodriguez, 34, of Allentown, PA, was sentenced to 120 years of in prison and a lifetime of supervised release by United States District Court Judge Joshua D. Wolson for his convictions on multiple child exploitation offenses.

In December 2021, the defendant pleaded guilty to four counts each of manufacturing and distributing child pornography. The charges stemmed from Rodriguez’ sexual abuse of two pre-pubescent children, aged 3 and 10 years old, and his recording of the abuse of each child. The defendant then distributed those images and videos over the internet to groups of other child sex offenders, and encouraged those offenders to redistribute them further to even more people on the internet. The defendant also solicited tips on what kind of child exploitation images to produce from other members of chat groups focused on creating such horrific illicit material. The videos and images not only depicted Rodriguez’ sexual abuse of each child, but also showed the faces of each child victim. The defendant was arrested in May 2020, shortly after distributing the child exploitation images to an online chat where one of the participants was an undercover FBI agent.

“Rodriguez sexually assaulted two very young children and then distributed images of those assaults online, where they will exist indefinitely,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “For that depravity, this defendant will now spend more than a lifetime in prison; securely confined and unable to victimize any more children. Our Office and our law enforcement partners are committed to doing the difficult work of investigating and prosecuting these heinous crimes in order to hold people like Rodriguez accountable.”

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brittany Jones.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Khaseem White, 24, of Philadelphia, PA, pleaded guilty before United States District Court Judge Karen Marston to the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

On May 4, 2021, Philadelphia Police officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop of the defendant and his associate, who was driving. When officers approached, White and his associate suddenly made a U-turn and drove off at a high rate of speed, resulting in a car accident involving at least six cars. There was substantial damage to the defendant’s car and several others. An officer then saw the defendant climb out of his car and cross the street. When the officer caught up to White, the officer saw a black handgun with an extended magazine laying on the ground near him.

As part of the investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, agents discovered videos of the defendant holding a similar firearm with an extended magazine as the one recovered near White, including in a music video posted to his social media account. Agents also learned that the defendant was prohibited from possessing firearms because he had previously been convicted of a felony offense.

“Our Office is committed to prosecuting those who commit violent crimes including illegally possessing firearms, which is a federal crime” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “In this case, a previously convicted felon illegally possessed a loaded firearm, which presents a clear danger to our community that is struggling under a surge of violent gun crime.”

“This investigation is a result of our outstanding partnership with the Philadelphia Police Department,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “Convicted felons who carry firearms pose a serious risk to public safety.  ATF will continue to aggressively pursue these investigations and work with our law enforcement partners to remove violent criminals from our communities.”

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Jeanette Kang.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Chidozie Collins Obasi, 29, of Nigeria, was charged by Indictment with one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, six counts of mail fraud, and 16 counts of wire fraud, all stemming from a complicated, evolving fraud scheme that initially targeted Americans through a spam email campaign offering illegitimate “work from home” jobs, and then during the COVID-19 pandemic shifted to targeting U.S. hospitals and medical systems by offering non-existent ventilators for sale beginning in March 2020, and finally shifted again in June 2020 to using stolen identity information of American citizens to apply for and obtain Economic Injury Disaster Loans (“EID Loans”). The Indictment alleges that Obasi perpetrated this fraud from Nigeria, with the help of co-conspirators in Canada and elsewhere. The defendant and his co-conspirators are alleged to have obtained more than $31,000,000 through this multi-faceted fraud scheme, with the overwhelming majority of that money – more than $30 million – coming from the State of New York for the intended purchase of ventilators.

The scheme alleged in the Indictment began in September 2018, with a spam email campaign that offered phony “work from home” jobs. When a person responded to the phony job offer, Obasi or a co-conspirator posed as a representative of a legitimate company, often a supposed medical equipment supplier based outside the United States, and offered the person a job as the company’s U.S. representative with responsibilities including collecting on outstanding invoices. A co-conspirator in Canada then sent the new “employee” counterfeit checks purportedly from customers of the company, and the new “employee” deposited the checks, took a commission, and wired the rest of the money to a foreign bank account ostensibly owned by the fake company. As alleged in the Indictment, Obasi and his co-conspirators obtained more than $1 million in this manner.

The Indictment further alleges that in approximately March 2020, soon after the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States and ventilators were in high demand, Obasi posed as a representative of an Indonesian-based medical supply company offering ventilators for sale, and claimed to have a large stockpile of ventilators manufactured by a German company whose headquarters was in Telford, PA. The defendant allegedly convinced a medical equipment broker in the U.S. to broker sales of these non-existent ventilators, and ultimately deceived the State of New York into wiring more than $30 million for the purchase of ventilators that did not exist. Obasi continued to target other potential customers with this same scam, including hospitals.

Later, in approximately June 2020, the Indictment alleges that Obasi and his co-conspirators took advantage of the EID Loan program by using stolen identities of U.S. citizens to apply for and obtain more than $135,000 in EID Loan proceeds.

Obasi is presently a fugitive, and the United States is seeking to locate and arrest him. Anyone with knowledge of his whereabouts should contact their local FBI Office.

If caught and convicted, Obasi faces a maximum sentence of 621 years in prison, a five-year period of supervised release, and a $5,750,000 fine. Obasi also will be required to make full restitution of the more than $31,000,000 that he obtained by fraud.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael S. Lowe.

An Indictment, Information, or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Michael Garrison, 43, of Croydon, PA, was charged by Information with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, one count of conspiracy to destroy an energy facility, eight counts of wire fraud, two counts of destruction of an energy facility, and one count of filing a false tax return.

The Information alleges that starting in 2018 and continuing until August 2021, Garrison broke into shuttered coal-fired power plants that had been decommissioned, including Titus Station in Berks County, Cromby Station in Chester County, Southward Generating Station in Philadelphia, and the Gould Street Generating Station in Baltimore, Maryland, in order to steal copper wire and other metal, which he then sold to scrap yards in Philadelphia. The Information further alleges that between January 2020 and August 2021, Garrison sold stolen scrap on approximately 175 separate occasions to a Philadelphia scrap yard, for which he was paid more than $117,000. But the payment the defendant received paled in comparison to the damage he caused to the power plants. For example, the Information alleges that in the summer of 2021 alone, Garrison caused more than $1.5 million worth of damage to Titus Station in order to expose and pull the copper wire and other metal that he stole from that facility. As set forth in the Information, Garrison is also charged with filing a false 2020 U.S. Income Tax Return that failed to declare the more than $62,000 he was paid that year from the Philadelphia scrap yard.

“Stealing or vandalizing energy facilities – operational or not – is a federal offense which will be vigorously prosecuted by our Office,” said U.S. Attorney Romero.

“Brazenly breaking into and damaging a power facility — for any reason — is unacceptable,” said Jacqueline Maguire, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “It’s imperative to hold perpetrators accountable for their destruction and, in doing so, we seek to also deter others from committing such a serious federal crime.”

“No matter the source, all income is taxable,” said IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty. “Mr. Garrison is alleged to have earned a living by stealing. Income derived from theft is taxable and IRS-CI remain committed to investigating these types of crimes. “

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael S. Lowe and Judy Smith.

An Indictment, Information, or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Manuel Lopez Avitia, 45, a Mexican national, was sentenced to 15 years and one month in prison, and five years of supervised release, by United States District Judge Chad F. Kenney for numerous narcotics offenses.

In March 2021, the defendant pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and two counts of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, and aiding and abetting. The charges stemmed from the defendant’s role as the leader of a nationwide fentanyl trafficking organization, which distributed approximately 27 kilograms of fentanyl in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania from at least one known stash house in Whitehall Township, PA, and other locations across the country, from May 2017 to March 2019.

“Drug addiction and the distribution operations that enable it are at epidemic levels in Philadelphia, Allentown, Reading and other cities and towns across our District, so we are aggressively prosecuting those responsible for the surge,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Lopez-Avitia and others associated with this organization pumped large quantities of deadly fentanyl into neighborhoods across the country, putting many people’s lives at risk. We want to thank our law enforcement partners in this case for their hard work and dedication.”

“Lopez-Avitia was responsible for trafficking 27 kilograms of fentanyl across our region and the country over a two-year period where illicit fentanyl ravaged our communities,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division.  “Illicit fentanyl continues to plague our streets today; Lopez-Avitia rightly deserves this lengthy federal prison sentence for his drug-trafficking activities.”

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Bensalem Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Francis A. Weber.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced today that Ebony Wortham, Esq., has been named Executive United States Attorney for Community Engagement for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The EUSA is a newly created role which will focus on creating partnerships in communities across the Eastern District of Pennsylvania with an emphasis on education and crime prevention, particularly in those communities struggling with high rates of violent crime, opioid abuse, and the legacy of generations of systemic exclusion from education, healthcare, housing and employment.

“Ebony’s experience and acumen as a former prosecutor, law enforcement partner and community advocate exceeds the demanding vision I had in mind when creating this new position in our Office,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “My goal for the community outreach efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, under Ebony’s leadership, is that we become a consistent, trusted presence in the communities we serve – which will ultimately lead to lasting, meaningful impact on our District and its people.”

“I am honored and humbled to have been selected to serve as Executive U.S. Attorney for Community Engagement,” said Ms. Wortham. “Throughout my life and career, I have sought opportunities to work collaboratively with community stakeholders and system partners to promote public safety and to improve the life chances of individuals, youth and families. In this new role, I look forward to continuing to learn from – and partner with – organizations, leaders, and citizens across our region, as we work collectively on solutions to strengthen and transform our neighborhoods.

“Historically, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania has been a critical partner in helping to galvanize the broader community around a larger strategic vision for public safety and well-being,” continued Ms. Wortham. “This position will provide me with the opportunity to work with my incredible colleagues within the U.S. Attorney’s Office to build on that extraordinary legacy as we implement U.S. Attorney Romero’s bold and dynamic strategic vision for community engagement.”

Ms. Wortham most recently served as a Senior Managing Consultant with the Center for Justice and Safety Finance within PFM’s Management and Budget Consulting Practice, where she worked with state and local government clients around the country to create operational and procedural efficiencies in their work. Prior to joining PFM, she was a 15-year veteran of the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, where she served as its Director of Juvenile Justice Policy and Prevention in addition to her work prosecuting cases. Ms. Wortham has deep roots in the community as a lifelong Philadelphian and remains engaged in numerous organizations and across a variety of programs and fields, focused on improving relationships between youth and law enforcement; reducing and preventing gun violence; providing social services, mentoring, job training, college preparatory and life skills; and advocating for trauma-informed practices.  

Ms. Wortham is a graduate of Central High School of Philadelphia (256). She received a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Temple University; a law degree from Widener University School of Law; a master’s degree in Organizational Development and Leadership from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine; and a master’s degree in Public Administration from the Fels Institute of Government of the University of Pennsylvania.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Matt “Mack” Jones, 39, of Bensalem, PA, was convicted at trial of multiple narcotics offenses including distribution of heroin and conspiracy to distribute heroin.

In January 2018, New Jersey State Police, the Philadelphia DEA, New Jersey (Camden) DEA, and the Philadelphia Police Department began a joint investigation of the defendant and other co-conspirators related to a drug trafficking operation. Investigators learned that the defendant was a supplier of heroin, and would use female associates as couriers to deliver bags of heroin to customers. Phone records, text messages, and physical surveillance confirmed the defendant’s participation in the conspiracy to distribute and deliver substantial amounts of heroin throughout the Philadelphia region.

The investigation progressed from controlled purchases of heroin from the defendant and his co-conspirators, to the eventual seizure of substantial amounts of fentanyl-laced heroin, narcotics adulterants, drug paraphernalia, and multiple stolen firearms from an apartment used by the defendant and his coconspirators to store and distribute drugs. All told, the narcotics conspiracy was responsible for distributing over a half kilogram of heroin and/or fentanyl.

“Drug addiction and the distribution operations that enable it are at epidemic levels in Philadelphia, and the federal government is aggressively prosecuting those responsible for the surge,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Jones and other members of this conspiracy pumped large quantities of narcotics into our communities, putting many people’s lives at risk. We want to thank our law enforcement partners in this case for their hard work and dedication.”

The case was investigated by Drug Enforcement Administration, the Philadelphia Police Department, New Jersey State Police, the Bensalem Township Police, and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Metcalf.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Najee Cunningham, 31, and James Cunningham, 27, both of Wilmington, North Carolina, and Rickia Adams, 24, of Marion, South Carolina, were charged by Indictment with multiple firearms offenses related to their scheme to illegally traffic guns across state lines from the southern United States into Philadelphia, a large northeastern city, a fact pattern which is commonly known as the “iron pipeline.” Specifically, all three defendants were charged with conspiracy to deal firearms without a license and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Beginning in 2021, ATF Special Agents identified multiple firearms recovered in the City of Philadelphia, many connected to shootings, homicides, and illegal gun possession cases, that had been purchased by the same individuals in Ohio, South Carolina, and North Carolina. The short time frame between the purchase of the firearm and recovery in Philadelphia (known as the “time to crime” period) indicated that the weapons may have been trafficked into the city – a city that experienced the highest number of homicides in recorded history last year and is on track to outpace that number this year. In this case, the shortest “time to crime” alleged in the Indictment is just one day from the date of purchase in another state to the recovery of the firearm in Philadelphia, in connection with a crime. The Indictment also alleges that the defendants purchased more than 50 firearms over the course of a year and transported them to Philadelphia for sale on the black market. To date, at least 25 of those firearms have been recovered in the greater Philadelphia area.

“Stopping the gun violence ravaging our city and supporting the work of the Philadelphia Police Department is a top priority for our Office,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Earlier this year, the Justice Department announced strategies to fight violent crime, including cracking down on firearms trafficking and the ‘iron pipeline’ – the illegal flow of guns sold in mostly southern states, transported up the East Coast, and found at crime scenes in northeastern cities like ours. This Indictment, one of several announced just this year, shows that we are committed and determined to focus our resources on this problem.”

“Stemming the illegal flow of firearms into our city will always be at the forefront of our mission,” said Matthew Varisco, Special Agent in charge of ATF’s Philadelphia Field Division.  “ATF and our dedicated partners at the U.S. Attorney’s Office are committed to using all tools available, to include the use of crime gun intelligence data, to make sure those engaged in trafficking firearms into the Commonwealth are held accountable.” 

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

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum possible sentence of 10 years in prison.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley N. Martin.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA, PA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced a $16.4 million civil settlement with Essilor International, Essilor of America, Inc., Essilor Laboratories of America, Inc., and Essilor Instruments USA (collectively, “Essilor”), headquartered in Dallas, Texas, to resolve allegations that the company violated the False Claims Act by causing claims to be submitted to Medicare and Medicaid that resulted from violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute. 

Essilor manufactures, markets, and distributes optical lenses and equipment used to produce optical lenses. The Anti‑Kickback Statute prohibits offering or paying anything of value to induce the referral of items or services covered by Medicare, Medicaid and other federally funded programs. The statute is intended to ensure that medical providers’ judgments are not compromised by improper financial incentives. 

The United States alleges that between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2016, Essilor knowingly and willfully offered or paid remuneration to eye care providers, such as optometrists and ophthalmologists, to induce those providers to order and purchase Essilor products for their patients, including Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute. Specifically, the United States contends that Essilor, through its Strategic Alliance, Practice Builder Loyalty, Practice Builder Elite, and Growth Financing programs (collectively, “Threshold Programs”) knowingly and willfully offered or paid unlawful remuneration to providers to induce providers to order and purchase Essilor products and knowingly caused providers to submit false claims to Medicare and Medicaid for Essilor products that were tainted by kickbacks that Essilor offered or paid to providers enrolled in Threshold Programs. 

“Our healthcare system is predicated on providers making decisions solely in the best interest of the patient,” said United States Attorney Romero. “Kickbacks threaten to corrupt that decision-making. The United States Attorney’s Office stands ready to pursue anyone who fails to abide by the rules that ensure our system functions as it should.”

The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by relators Laura Thompson, Lisa Brez, and Christie Rudolph, former Essilor district sales managers. Under those provisions, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of any recovery.  The qui tam cases are captioned United States ex rel. Laura Thompson & Lisa Brez v. Essilor Int’l, No. 3:15-CV-2853-C (N.D. Tex.) and United States ex rel. Christie Rudolph v. Essilor Labs. of Am., Inc., No. 16-CV-0537 (WB) (E.D. Pa.).

“We sincerely thank Ms. Thompson, Ms. Brez, and Ms. Rudolph. Without the willingness of relators to shed light on allegations of fraud, preserving government program funds would be far more challenging.” said U.S. Attorney Romero. 

In connection with the settlement, Essilor entered into a five-year Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. The CIA requires, among other things, that Essilor hire an Independent Review Organization to review its systems, policies, processes, and procedures for ensuring that any discounts, rebates, or other reductions in price offered to providers comply with the Anti-Kickback Statute. The CIA also requires Essilor to put in place new written review and approval process to ensure all existing and new discount arrangements comply with the Anti-Kickback Statute.

“Kickback schemes can impact medical judgment, eroding the trust of both patients and taxpayers,” said Lisa M. Re, Acting Chief Counsel at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General. “Essilor’s Corporate Integrity Agreement is intended to establish policies and practices so it complies with the Anti-Kickback Statute moving forward.”

This case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General. For the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the investigation and settlement were handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul W. Kaufman and auditor Dawn Wiggins.

The investigation and resolution of this matter illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating healthcare fraud.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act. Tips and complaints from all sources about potential fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement, can be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services at 800-HHS-TIPS (800-447-8477).

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

PHILADELPHIA – U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that the United States filed a proposed civil judgment with Philadelphia-based Spivack, Inc., previously operating under the name Verree Pharmacy, and owner-pharmacist Mitchell Spivack, to resolve allegations that they engaged in a years-long practice of illegally dispensing opioids and other controlled substances, and systematic health care fraud. The United States filed the related lawsuit against them and other employees of the pharmacy earlier this year. The pharmacy and Spivack have agreed, subject to court approval, to pay over $4.1 million to resolve their civil liability under the Controlled Substances Act, False Claims Act, and forfeiture. The proposed judgment would also permanently ban them from ever dispensing controlled substances in the future.

The culmination of a multi-year federal-state investigation, the previously-filed complaint alleged that Verree Pharmacy, its pharmacist and owner Mitchell Spivack, and other employees of Verree, had a responsibility to dispense opioids and other controlled substances only when appropriate. Instead, the United States alleged that the pharmacy and Spivack dispensed the drugs, even when faced with numerous red flags suggestive of diversion—such as opioids in extreme doses, dangerous combinations of opioids and other “cocktail” drugs preferred by those addicted, excessive cash payments for the drugs, blatantly forged prescriptions, and other signs that the pills were being diverted for illegal purposes. The complaint alleged that Verree—which was the top retail pharmacy purchasing oxycodone in Pennsylvania—has been a nationwide and regional outlier in its deviant purchasing, dispensing, and billing of controlled substances. To avoid scrutiny from the drug distributors that sold them the pills, Verree through Spivack allegedly made false statements to maintain the façade of legitimacy and keep the pharmacy stocked with these pills critical to their profits. Behind that façade, the complaint alleged that Spivack drew millions of dollars from the pharmacy while the public suffered the consequences.

The United States’ complaint alleged that Verree and Spivack were also engaged in an expansive health care fraud scheme involving fraudulent billings for drugs not actually dispensed.  The alleged cornerstone of the scheme was a code used by the pharmacy employees in their internal computer system: “BBDF” or “Bill But Don’t Fill.”  Verree, Spivack, and their co-conspirators allegedly used BBDF as a means to cover their losses on other drugs and further line their pockets with illicit profits by falsely claiming to insurers, including Medicare, that they had dispensed a drug to a patient, when in fact they had not. According to the complaint, this sophisticated fraud—which one of the employees admitted to investigators—resulted in significant damages to Medicare and other federal programs.

The lawsuit seeks civil penalties and damages on Verree, Spivack, and the other pharmacy employee defendants under the Controlled Substances Act, False Claims Act, and civil forfeiture.

The pharmacy and Spivack agreed to resolve this civil liability under terms outlined in the proposed consent judgment, if accepted by the court. Among other things, the pharmacy and Spivack would pay over $4.1 million in civil damages and penalties under the False Claims Act, Controlled Substances Act, and in civil forfeiture, along with the approximately $500,000 Spivack agreed to pay in criminal restitution and criminal forfeiture. The proposed resolution would also permanently prevent the pharmacy and Spivack from prescribing, distributing, or dispensing any controlled substances in the future, and prevents them from ever seeking another controlled substance registration from the Drug Enforcement Administration. The resolution would also impose a 22-year exclusion on the pharmacy and Spivack from Medicare and Medicaid.

The civil complaint relates to criminal charges that were previously filed against Mitchell Spivack. On May 31, 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Office filed a one-count criminal information against Spivack for conspiracy to defraud the United States based on allegations similar to those in the civil litigation. Spivack pled guilty to that charge on June 29, 2022.

“Pharmacies and pharmacists who engage in illegal dispensing of opioids devastate their communities and worsen our country’s opioid epidemic” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Providers who abuse Medicare and other federal health care programs by taking money with false billings also steal precious resources from programs critical to the health of our seniors and other citizens. This Office is committed to investigating and holding accountable those providers who violate their controlled substance and health care billing obligations. Our Office deeply appreciates our partnership with the DEA, HHS-OIG, and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office in pursuing these cases.”

“In a city that has been so adversely and disproportionately affected by the opioid epidemic, Verree Pharmacy was the top retail pharmacy purchasing oxycodone in the entire state of Pennsylvania,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division. “Spivack and Verree Pharmacy routinely demonstrated total disregard for their professional and ethical obligations, and improperly dispensed powerful painkillers when numerous warning signs were present.”

“The Medicare and Medicaid Programs provide vital prescription drug services to their beneficiaries,” said Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge of the Philadelphia Regional Office for the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. “Pharmacies are required to only bill for prescriptions and products they actually provide to their patients. HHS-OIG will continue to work with the U.S.  Attorney’s Office, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, and the DEA to investigate allegations of fraudulent insurance billings.”

“We know that nearly 80% of those who use heroin first started with misusing a prescription opioid,” said Attorney General Josh Shapiro. “Today, this pharmacy and their owner took a critical step in resolving the civil suit against them for allegedly filling prescriptions outside of medical standards for the highly addictive drug oxycodone. In addition to the owner’s criminal plea, this civil settlement will get them out of the drug business for good. The opioid crisis killed 5,438 Pennsylvanians last year – and we can’t afford to lose one more life. Pharmacies and medical professionals have a responsibility under the law to dispense these drugs only when appropriate.”

If the public has any information regarding Verree Pharmacy or any other health care fraud allegation, individuals should contact the HHS-OIG hotline at 800-HHS-TIPS.

The case is being investigated by the Philadelphia Field Division of the DEA, the Pennsylvania Department of State’s Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation, HHS-OIG, and the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, with additional assistance from the HHS-OIG Office of Audit Services, Office of Personnel Management Office of Inspector General, the Defense Health Agency, and the Defense Criminal Investigative Service. The civil investigation and litigation are being handled by Assistant United States Attorneys Anthony D. Scicchitano and Sarah L. Grieb and auditors Dawn Wiggins and George Niedzwicki. The related criminal charges are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney M. Beth Leahy and Special Assistant United States Attorney Linda Montag from the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General.

Except for what has been admitted in the criminal proceeding, the complaints in the civil litigation contain allegations only that the United States must prove if the case proceeds to trial. The proposed consent judgment would resolve any alleged civil liability as to Spivack, Inc. d/b/a Verree Pharmacy and Mitchell Spivack. The United States’ civil litigation against the remaining pharmacy employee defendants remains ongoing.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Natanael Alberto Montas, 33, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Superseding Indictment with attempted murder and assault of a federal officer, and multiple firearms and narcotics offenses, all stemming from his leadership of a fentanyl trafficking organization operating primarily in the Kensington section of Phildelphia. Kirsis Francisca Caceres, 36, also of Philadelphia, PA, was also charged with narcotics offenses for her role in the organization.

According to the Superseding Indictment, Montas was the leader of a drug trafficking group (DTG) that obtained bulk quantities of fentanyl to package and re-distribute the drugs to street-level organizations. In this role, Montas allegedly oversaw the entire operation, which included maintaining stash houses in Philadelphia which were utilized to mix, cut, and package the narcotics for resale to street-level dealers. Caceres and others in the DTG followed the direction of Montas, utilizing stamps to market and identify their product with names like ‘Walgreens,’ ‘F150,’ ‘RedBull,’ ‘Polo,’ ‘Monster,’ and others. Further, Montas maintained firearms at his disposal to protect himself and his drug trafficking business.

After several weeks of surveillance by law enforcement, in March 2021, investigators approached a vehicle being driven by Montas in which they believed he was transporting illegal narcotics. In an effort to evade officers, Montas led police on a high-speed chase through the narrow streets of Philadelphia’s Mayfair neighborhood, driving around stopped vehicles until he could no longer navigate on the roads, and ultimately fled on foot through backyards and alleyways. When he was confronted by a federal task force officer in pursuit, Montas allegedly fired a shot at the officer, which fortunately missed. As the officer took cover, Montas fired three more shots before breaking into a private residence occupied by a woman and two children, where he was ultimately apprehended. Montas, Caceres and others in the DTG were eventually apprehended following this dramatic series of events.

“Fentanyl is one of the deadliest narcotics flooding the streets of our country; Montas and the operation he directed made sure there was a steady supply of it right here in Philadelphia,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “And his danger to the community did not end there: he directly threatened the lives of dozens of people when he fled from law enforcement, and is now charged with attempting to take the life of a federal officer. We will continue to work with our federal and local law enforcement partners to get dangerous criminals like this defendant off the streets.”

“Let this indictment serve as a crystal clear message that any acts of violence committed against a federal agent will be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Thomas Hodnett, Special Agent in Charge of Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Philadelphia Field Division. “As if Montas and Caceres’ alleged distribution of illicit fentanyl wasn’t dangerous enough to the community, they allegedly stock-piled numerous firearms in furtherance of their drug-trafficking activities. Montas’ alleged shooting at a task force officer assigned to our office will not be without a severe consequence.” 

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration as part of Operation Relentless Pursuit, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jason Grenell and Erica Kivitz.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Aasim Harps-Busbee, 22, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Indictment with one count of possession of a firearm by a felon, and one count of possession of ammunition by a felon. The charges stem from a series of documented posts on social media and an incident during which the defendant was found in possession of ammunition.

According to the Indictment and other court documents filed in this case, on May 25, 2022, the defendant was convicted of state charges of carjacking and statutory sexual assault, in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas.  Both offenses are felonies and punishable by more than one year in jail, thus rendering the defendant ineligible to possess firearms or ammunition under federal law.

Between July 6 and July 11, 2022, Harps-Busbee allegedly posted pictures to social media accounts that included a firearm and an offer to sell a firearm to any willing buyer for a specified price. When PPD and ATF initially located the defendant on July 11, 2022, he was not in possession of a firearm; however, he was in possession of six rounds of ammunition. Harps-Busbee later admitted to investigators that he possessed the firearm that he posted pictures of on social media. The defendant was arrested on July 19, 2022, and was detained pending trial.

“Being a felon in possession of a firearm, ammunition, or both are all serious offenses, particularly in a city like Philadelphia where violent crime and gun violence are significant problems,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “Our Office is determined to continue doing everything we can to reduce gun violence in our city by investigating and arresting criminals like Harps-Busbee so they remain off the streets for a long time.”

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

The case was investigated by the Philadelphia Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Eckert.

An indictment, information, or criminal complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.