Eastern District of Pennsylvania

PHILADELPHIA – Giuseppe “Pino” DiMeo, 49 years old, and a resident of Eagleville, Pennsylvania was charged today by indictment[1] with two counts of conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), and twelve counts of filing false tax returns announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment charges that from 2008 through 2012, DiMeo conspired with his business partners at restaurants in Wilmington, Delaware and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to defraud the IRS of income taxes and payroll taxes. DiMeo skimmed cash from four of his restaurants and failed to report the cash income to the IRS. DiMeo also paid many of his employees in cash under the table and failed to inform his accountant or the IRS about his businesses’ cash payroll. In total, DiMeo had over three million dollars in unreported gross receipts and failed to pay to the IRS approximately one million dollars in income taxes and payroll taxes.

DiMeo has owned and operated numerous restaurants in the Philadelphia area, and presently owns DiMeo’s Pizzaiuoli Napulitani in Wilmington, Delaware; Pizzeria DiMeo’s (Andorra) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Arde Osteria in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

The defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 46 years of imprisonment, three years of supervised release, a $3.5 million fine, and a $1,400 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations,

and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Maria M. Carrillo and Tiwana L. Wright.

[1] An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

An Indictment[1] was unsealed today charging Bright Ogodo, 42, of Brooklyn, New York, with one counts of bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

The Indictment alleges that Ogodo recruited other persons, referred to as “runners,” to pose as TD Bank customers by using false drivers’ licenses supplied by Ogodo and means of identification of the TD Bank customers, including their names, social security numbers, and dates of birth. The Indictment alleges that Ogodo drove the runners to TD Bank branches in the Philadelphia area, as well as in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Delaware, gave the runners the false drivers’ licenses and other means of identification, and instructed them how to access the TD Bank customers’ accounts. The Indictment alleges that the runners, and defendant Ogodo himself, deposited large-dollar counterfeit checks and small amounts of cash and money orders into the bank accounts, thereby learning the account numbers (if they were not already known) and also as a way of being able to know the exact date, location, and amount of the last deposit into the account, which co-schemers then used to set up on-line access to the accounts. The Indictment alleges that runners posing as the true account holders obtained new ATM cards tied to the TD Bank customers’ checking accounts, and then one or more co-schemers, including defendant Ogodo himself, began to deplete the funds in that checking account by using the newly-obtained ATM cards to withdraw cash and purchase merchandise and money orders. The Indictment alleges that one or more co-schemers often transferred funds from the TD Bank customers’ existing home equity lines of credit (HELOC) into the checking accounts that were tied to the ATM cards in the possession of defendant Ogodo and other co-schemers, which allowed defendant Ogodo and other co-schemers to obtain over $579,000 from the TD Bank accounts. The Indictment further alleges that defendant Ogodo and his co-schemers intended to cause TD Bank to sustain more than $785,000 in losses, as that is the amount of counterfeit checks and HELOC and other transfers made into the checking accounts tied to the ATM cards in the co-schemers’ possession.

Ogodo faces a maximum sentence of 34 years’ imprisonment, including a mandatory minimum two-year term of imprisonment, a five-year period of supervised release, a $1,500,000 fine, and a $300 special assessment and restitution of $597,107.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael S. Lowe.

[1] An Indictment or Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty

PHILADELPHIA - Abdoulaye Diallo, 52, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced today to 42 months in prison for defrauding the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the federal food stamp program, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

Diallo owned and operated Brothers Food Market, a grocery store on Germantown Avenue near Venango Street in Philadelphia. On January 12, 2017, at a trial before the Honorable Cynthia M. Rufe and a federal jury, the jury convicted Diallo on all counts of the indictment. The jury convicted Diallo of conspiring with another individual to buy SNAP benefits for cash from those who had SNAP benefit cards (also known as PA Access cards) between September 2011 and February 2015. The jury also found Diallo guilty of exchanging SNAP benefits for cash on five different dates during that period, each of which constituted wire fraud and SNAP benefit fraud. The amount of money charged to the SNAP Program varied from $300 to almost $600 for each transaction.

.Between September of 2011 and March of 2015, Diallo submitted to USDA, on behalf of Brothers Food Market, fraudulent SNAP reimbursement requests for $1,063,541

In addition to the prison term, Judge Rufe imposed a term of supervised release of three years, restitution to USDA of $1,063,541, and a $1,300 assessment.

The case was investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Floyd J. Miller and Albert S. Glenn.

Omar Meares, 28, of Philadelphia was charged today by Indictment[1] with being a felon in possession of a firearm announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment charges that Meares possessed a Colt, Police Positive MK V, .38 Special caliber revolver, bearing serial number RD1155, which was loaded with six (6) live rounds of .38 caliber ammunition, on January 23, 2017, in Philadelphia, after having been convicted of a felony.

If convicted, Meares faces a maximum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, three years’ supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.

This case has been investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Philadelphia Police Department. The case has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Thomas M. Zaleski.

[1]An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Sean Donald Premock, 44, of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, entered pleas of guilty to nine counts of mail fraud, nine counts of wire fraud, one count of securities fraud, and one count of investment adviser fraud, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

As part of his guilty plea, Premock, who was formerly a licensed stockbroker and investment adviser, got fired by his employer for selling investments that were not approved by his employer and then started his own investment companies that he used to defraud his existing and new clients, most of whom were elderly. Premock admitted that he obtained more than $1 million from his clients, who believed they were giving the money to Premock to invest for them, by lying to his clients and telling them he would put their money in stocks, bonds, and other “safe” investments, while in reality Premock spent most of their money on himself and used some of the money to pay other clients. Premock also admitted that he did not disclose to his clients that he had permanently lost his stockbroker and investment adviser licenses. Premock admitted that he fabricated false account statements that he mailed to his clients, and used other means to deceive his clients into believing their investments were safe and to stall their attempts to obtain the return of their funds, including blaming a “lack of liquidity” on the policies of then-President Obama.

Premock faces a maximum sentence of 385 years’ imprisonment, a five-year period of supervised release, a $9,510,000 fine, and a $2,000 special assessment, and a likely advisory sentencing guideline range of 87 – 108 months’ imprisonment.

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

Dwayne J. Lynch, 28, of Bristol, Pennsylvania, was charged on May 4, 2017 by Indictment[1] with possession with the intent to distribute heroin, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment charges that on or about March 21, 2016, in Bristol, Lynch possessed heroin, which he intended to distribute, and also possessed a Remington model 870 Wingmaster sawed-off shotgun with a 13-inch barrel cut from the original length of 18 inches, bearing serial number S096668V, loaded with four live rounds and one spent shell casing, during and relation to a drug trafficking crime, after having been convicted of a felony.

If convicted of all counts, Lynch faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment, with a mandatory 10-year minimum sentence consecutive to any other sentence imposed, a $1,500,000 fine, a mandatory-minimum three years up to lifetime supervised release, and a $300 special assessment.

This case has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Bristol Borough Police Department. The case has been assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Thomas M. Zaleski.

[1]An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

James Johnman Jr., 36, of New Cumberland, Pennsylvania and a registered Megan’s Law offender, was charged today by Indictment with attempted enticement of a minor, distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. 

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment and a mandatory of at least 15 years of imprisonment, a lifetime of supervised release, a $750,000 dollar fine, mandatory restitution, a $300 special assessment, and a $15,000 special victims assessment.

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 Federal Bureau of Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Priya De Souza.

Garmonyou Wiles, 31, of Philadelphia, PA, and Michael Barnes, 29, of Camden, NJ, were charged today by Grand Jury Indictment with counterfeiting and narcotics charges announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. Wiles and Barnes were charged with possession and sale of counterfeit currency, as well as conspiring to sell and possess counterfeit currency. Additionally, Wiles alone was charged with possession with intent to distribute and sale of crack cocaine, as well as conspiring to possess and sell crack cocaine.

If convicted, Wiles and Barnes face guideline range sentences of 78-97 months and 70-87 months, respectively.

The case was investigated by Special Agent Harry Speer of the United States Secret Service and Special Agents Dale T. Keddie, James W. Crockett and Michael E. Roche of the United States Drug Enforcement Agency. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Mannion.

Karie Tafari Anthony Hibbert of Philadelphia, PA, was charged today by Indictment with illegal reentry after deportation, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment alleges that on or about April 3, 2017, Hibbert, an alien, and native and citizen of Jamaica, was found in the United States after having been deported from the United States on or about October 22, 2001.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of twenty years.

The case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations (“ERO”), and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen L. Grigsby.

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

Jose Chaves-Leiva, a/k/a “Jose Amando Chaves,” of Morrisville, PA, was charged today by Indictment with illegal reentry after deportation, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment alleges that on or about April 3, 2017, Chaves-Leiva, an alien, and native and citizen of Costa Rica, was found in the United States after having been deported from the United States on or about April 28, 2008, July 9, 2008, January 14, 2009, and March 26, 2009.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of ten years.

The case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations (“ERO”), and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Terri Marinari.

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

PHILADELPHIA – William Dombrow, of Darby, PA, pled guilty to four counts of wire fraud, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. Dombrow, a Monsignor in the Archdiocese who is currently on administrative leave, is charged with fraudulently diverting more than $535,000 in Archdiocese funds for his own personal use.

Dombrow resided at the Villa Saint Joseph Retirement home in Darby, PA, which also served as home to a number of retired priests. In his position as Monsignor, Dombrow had sole access to a Villa Saint Joseph bank account at Sharon Savings Bank, which was funded by gifts from wills and life insurance proceeds that were intended for the Archdiocese. Today Dombrow admitted that from December 2007 through May 2016 he withdrew, or caused to be withdrawn, and fraudulently misappropriated approximately $535,258.11 in fraudulently obtained funds from the bank account that he controlled at Sharon Savings Bank, and spent the funds at casinos in Chester, the Poconos, and Aruba, as well as funding a lavish lifestyle for himself.

Sentencing has been set for August 15, 2017 before the Honorable Jeffrey Schmehl, Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Dombrow faces a maximum of 80 years’ imprisonment for all four counts of wire fraud, $1,000,000 in fines, 5 years of supervised release, a $400 special assessment, and mandatory restitution. Dombrow is 77 years of age.

This case was investigated by the FBI in conjunction with the Darby Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Rotella.

Miguel Zavala-Lopez, of Kennett Square, PA, was charged today by Indictment with illegal reentry after deportation, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment alleges that on or about April 7, 2017, Zavala-Lopez, an alien, and native and citizen of Mexico, was found in the United States after having been deported from the United States on or about October 15, 2002, May 2, 2007, and April 17, 2008.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of two years.

The case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations (“ERO”), and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Laurie Magid.

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

Drew Alia, 40, of Philadelphia was sentence to a 12 month and 1 day term of imprisonment for willfully failing to file federal income tax returns for tax years 2010 through 2013 announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. Alia, an attorney, operated a home mortgage rescue service that was designed to assist home owners who were facing foreclosure.

During the sentencing hearing before United States District Court Judge Paul Diamond, the Court noted that Alia had received approximately $1.6 million in gross income. Alia was charged, by Information, with four counts of failing to file returns resulting in a tax loss of $127,037. In addition to a term of imprisonment, Judge Diamond also ordered Alia to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service for the tax loss he caused after he is released from prison.

The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Floyd J. Miller.

Defendant Leuk Kwan Chau, 21, of East Hampton, NY, was charged yesterday by Indictment with mail fraud, passport fraud, and aiding and abetting announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

According to the Indictment, beginning in or about November 2016, the defendant engaged in a scheme to defraud the Educational Testing Service (ETS) by having an imposter take a standardized entrance exam, the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), on his behalf. As part of the scheme, a counterfeit Chinese passport made and sent to the United States was intended to be used by the imposter to defraud ETS administrators into believing that the defendant had actually taken the standardized test. The defendant then received the benefit of the imposter’s test score for use at American colleges and universities.

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, a $500,000 fine, and a $200 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of State, and the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Terri A. Marinari. ETS cooperated fully in the investigation.

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

Esam Salah, age 54, of Villanova, Pennsylvania, was charged today by information[1] with one count of tax evasion, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The information charges that from January 2008 through April 2011, Salah, who was the president and sole shareholder of several restaurants in the Philadelphia area, did not report to the Internal Revenue Service approximately $2,769,813 in cash revenue that he used to pay employee salaries at two of his restaurants. Also according to the information, he failed to pay approximately $506,875 due for federal employee tax withholding and required Social Security and Medicare taxes.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 5 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, a three year period of supervised release, $ 250,000 fine and a $100 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Judy G. Smith.

[1]An Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Voncel R. Harrigan, Sr., 51, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania entered a plea of guilty to one count of conspiracy to file false income tax returns, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

According to court documents, the charges arose from Harrigan’s daughter, Vontia Jones’ tax fraud and identity theft scheme to obtain tax refunds from the IRS by filing over 700 false tax returns amounting to over three million dollars in the tax years 2008 through 2013. Defendant Jones operated a “business” she called “Jones Tax Service” which operated out of her home in Philadelphia. Jones designed multiple flyers for distribution advertising her services that stated “DON’T YOU DESERVE SOME INCOME TAX MONEY TOO? $750 [PER CHILD] WELFARE SOCIAL SECURITY UNEMPLOYMENT DISABILITY EVEN IF YOU NEVER HAD A JOB.” Defendant Jones conspired with her father, Voncel R. Harrigan, Sr., her sister, Michele Wood, and others who solicited personal identifying information from individuals under the guise that Jones’ business would get them “tax money” even if they never worked. Defendant Jones used the individuals’ information to file false tax returns and open bank accounts so that fraudulent tax refunds could be deposited and withdrawn from those accounts.

Among other things, defendant Harrigan opened up a business account so that the fraudulent tax refund checks could be deposited into that account. Defendant Harrigan made deposits of fraudulent tax refund checks, forged signatures on checks, and made withdrawals from that business account. This account had approximately $206,751, deposited in fraudulent tax refunds. Harrigan participated in the false claims conspiracy from February 9, 2011, when he opened the account, through January 24, 2012, when search warrants were executed at his home and defendant Jones’ home. During this time period, the conspiracy included 282 fraudulent tax returns (for the 2010 and 2011 tax years), which collectively claimed refunds of $1,233,974.

The defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, 3 years supervised release, $250,000 fine, $100 special assessment

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 Jessica Natali.

Andrew Bassaner, age 44 and Vicki Bunchuk, age 44, of Southampton, Pennsylvania were arrested today, when a 27-count indictment was unsealed, which charged the couple with various criminal tax fraud violations including conspiracy to defraud the United States, filing false individual, corporate and employment tax returns and with aiding and assisting in the preparation of false tax returns announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

According to the indictment, Bassaner and Bunchuk were the managers and owners of Florist Concierge Corporation located in Orlando, Florida. The corporation was initially formed in Pennsylvania, but subsequently incorporated in the State of Florida where it operated a telephone call center and internet service that accepted floral arrangement orders from customers throughout the United States. The indictment further alleges that Bassaner and Bunchuk entered into a contract with Floral Source International, located in Oregon, who managed a national registry of florists, who would fill the initial order for floral arrangement that Bassaner and Bunchuk’s company had contracted to provide.

The indictment alleged further that Bassaner and Bunchuk diverted funds from Florist Concierge which they used to pay personal living expenses and then failed to report the diverted funds as income on their personal income tax returns. The diverted funds were then misclassified as legitimate business expenses on the corporation’s tax returns which resulted in the corporation filing false returns as well. In addition, the indictment charges that Bassaner failed to collect and pay over employment taxes, Federal Insurance Contribution Act Taxes and Federal Unemployment Tax on behalf of employees who worked for Florist Concierge.

If convicted of the crimes charged in the indictment, the Bassaner and Bunchuk face a substantial period of incarceration in addition to a fine. This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Floyd J. Miller.

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

PHILADELPHIA – Harry W. “Buck” Buchanan, 63, of Allentown, PA, pleaded guilty yesterday to two counts of willfully failing to file tax returns, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. According to the information, Buchanan, who operated Harry Buchanan IV MD PC, failed to file federal tax returns in 2009 and 2010, although his income substantially exceeded the minimum income establishing the requirement to file.

The charges, the defendant faces up to one year in federal prison on each of two counts, as well as restitution, fines, supervised release, and special assessments.

This case was investigated by the IRS Criminal Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bea Witzleben.

PHILADELPHIA –William Bucci, 60, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced yesterday to 78 months in prison for running an investment fraud scheme that duped victims into turning over more than $3.2 million, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. United States District Judge Joel H. Slomsky also ordered that Bucci serve five years of supervised release after his prison term. In addition, Bucci must pay more than $3 million in restitution to the victims and the Internal Revenue Service.

According to the indictment, Bucci told his victims he was starting a wine and high-end olive oil import business. Among his one dozen victims was a Catholic Priest and a retired Philadelphia firefighter. The indictment charges securities fraud, four counts of mail fraud, one count of mortgage fraud, and five counts of making and subscribing false federal income tax returns for underreporting his income for the tax years 2007 through 2011. On June 8, 2016, Bucci entered a plea of guilty to the securities fraud, mail fraud, and mortgage fraud counts. He entered a plea of nolo contendre to the tax counts. After the government presented its evidence, the Court found the defendant guilty of all charges.

According to the indictment, beginning as early as 2004, Bucci represented to his brokerage clients-victims that he was starting a business to import high end olive oil and wine from Italy. But Bucci, who was a licensed stockbroker and a non-lawyer elector on the Pennsylvania Court of Judicial Discipline, never had an olive oil and wine business. He allegedly promised the clients a rate of return of at least 10% on their investment. He also falsely guaranteed to the investors that he would repay principal and interest. Bucci also allegedly solicited other individuals to loan him money for the purchase of real estate. According to the indictment, Bucci used funds from these individuals to support his lifestyle and to make payments to earlier victims. In total, the indictment alleges that victims entrusted in excess of $3.2 million to Bucci between November 2003 and December 2011.

The indictment further alleges that Bucci filed false federal income tax returns, underreporting his income, for the tax years 2007 through 2011. It is further alleged that, in 2012, Bucci provided false documents to Beneficial Mutual Savings Bank in connection with a mortgage that Beneficial held on a property that Bucci owned in Brigantine, New Jersey.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David J. Ignall and Trial Attorney Derek J. Ettinger of the Fraud Section of the Criminal Division of the United States Department of Justice.

PHILADELPHIA – A three-count indictment was unsealed today charging Jabaar Tindell (41) and Marc Bredell (28), both of Philadelphia, with theft of firearms from a federal firearms licensee, knowing possession of stolen firearms, and, as against Tindell only, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, all in connection with a burglary of Suburban Armory, a federally licensed firearms dealer located at 1008 MacDade Boulevard, Collingdale, Pennsylvania, on May 21, 2015. That burglary resulted in the theft of nineteen firearms the indictment alleges.

“ATF will continue to identify and arrest those individuals who steal firearms from our licensed dealers and funnel them into the hands of criminals who use them to commit violent crimes,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Sam Rabadi. “We are committed to protecting our communities and business owners.”

If convicted of all counts, Tindell faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, while Bredell faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Each defendant also faces possible fines, supervised release, and special assessments.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Collingdale Police Department and the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office, Criminal Investigation Division. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Eric A. Boden.

An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

PHILADELPHIA – Richard Boyle, 57, of Doylestown, PA was arrested today by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. On April 19, 2017, a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Boyle with 11 counts of bank robbery, 10 counts of using or carrying a firearm during the commission of those bank robberies, and 10 counts of money laundering. Boyle stole a total of $495,686 in U.S. currency during the commission of the 11 bank robberies, which occurred in Montgomery and Bucks counties between 2012 and 2016. The indictment further alleged that Boyle laundered a portion of the proceeds of these robberies through his aerial photography business, in an attempt to hide the source of these funds.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Violent Crimes Task Force and Fort Washington Resident Agency, in conjunction with the Horsham Township Police Department; Newtown Township Police Department; Lower Makefield Township Police Department; Upper Dublin Township Police Department; Upper Providence Township Police Department; Pennsylvania State Police; Whitpain Township Police Department; Plymouth Township Police Department; Montgomery Township Police Department; Warminster Township Police Department Montgomery County District Attorney's Office; and Bucks County District Attorney's Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert J. Livermore.

Robert James Tyndall, 45, of Canada, was charged today by indictment with coercion and enticement of a minor, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. According to the indictment, from on or about August 13, 2012, to on or about July 12, 2013, Tyndall, using the internet, knowingly persuaded, induced and enticed a minor under the age of 18 to engage in sexual activity for which any person can be charged with a criminal offense.

If convicted, Tyndall faces a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment, which includes a mandatory minimum 10 year term of imprisonment, a mandatory minimum 5 years up to a lifetime of supervised release, a $250,000 fine and a $100 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigations, the Henrico County Virginia Police Department, and the Calgary Police Service in Calgary, Alberta Canada, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffery W. Whitt.

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, 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.

Ernesto Perez Martinez-Macias, a/k/a “Ernesto Perez Macias,” of Sunnyville, CA, was charged today by Indictment with illegal reentry after deportation, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment alleges that on or about March 8, 2017, Martinez-Macias, an alien, and native and citizen of Mexico, was found in the United States after having been deported from the United States on or about September 15, 2004, July 9, 2015, and October 22, 2015.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of ten years.

The case was investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations (“ERO”), and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James Petkun.

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

A federal jury today found Abel Gonzalez, 46, guilty of conspiracy to defraud the United States, theft of government money, and aggravated identity theft, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis Lappen.

The evidence at trial proved that Gonzalez participated in a scheme to defraud the United States by filing false income tax returns using stolen identities of Puerto Rico residents. Gonzalez and other members of the scheme ensured they controlled the addresses listed on the tax returns. Once the tax refund checks were mailed to and collected from the addresses he controlled, Gonzalez cashed the fraudulently obtained checks at multiple check cashing businesses he and others operated. Between 2010 and 2012, Gonzalez and others in the scheme cashed over $2 million of fraudulently obtained United States Treasury tax refund checks.

Gonzalez faces a sentence of incarceration including a mandatory minimum sentence of two years’ imprisonment for each of the aggravated identity theft convictions, followed by three years of supervised release. He also faces a possible fine and mandatory payment of full restitution.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Tiwana Wright and Jennifer B. Jordan.

Mohamed Waritay, 41, of Darby, Pennsylvania entered pleas of guilty to a two-count Information charging him with aiding and assisting in the preparation of false and fraudulent tax returns for his clients, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

According to court documents, the charges arose from Waritay’s scheme, which included tax years 2009 through 2014, in which he placed materially false items on the fraudulent tax returns such as inflated deductions, bogus tax credit amounts and fictitious dependent identities. The inflated deductions included itemized deductions such as gifts to charity, medical expenses and unreimbursed employee expenses on IRS Form 2106. Waritay also placed bogus tax credit amounts on the fraudulent tax returns related to education and residential energy credits, and falsely documented dependents by placing the biographical information of unrelated children on his clients’ returns, in order to defraud the United States government. Waritay’ scheme caused a tax loss to the United States in the amount of approximately $175,939.00. Additionally, during the course of the IRS investigation into Waritay’s conduct, Waritay met with one of his clients twice prior to that client’s scheduled interview with IRS agents. During those meetings, Waritay instructed his client to lie and provide false statements to IRS agents conducting the client’s interview in a corrupt effort to impede the investigation.

The defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 6 years imprisonment, 3 years supervised release, $200,000 fine, $200 special assessment

The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Eric L. Gibson.

Rhonda Coleman, 56, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged by Indictment unsealed today with nineteen counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of materially false income tax returns, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. According to the Indictment, Coleman is the co-owner of P.C. Tax Services, a business located in Philadelphia. She used her position as a tax preparer at the business to falsely overstate and include income, deductions and credits on her clients’ returns without the authorization of those clients between 2011 and 2012.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 48 years’ imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, a $1,900,000 fine, and a $1,900 special assessment.

The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tomika N.S. Patterson.

An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty

Philadelphia – Cory D. Foster, 29, of Philadelphia, PA, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney to a total of 714 months (59.5 years) in prison for three armed robberies of convenience stores and an armed carjacking. In May 2016, a jury convicted Foster of robbing at gunpoint a Lukoil Service station and convenience store in Trevose, Bucks County, PA; a Liberty gas station and convenience store in Plymouth Meeting, Montgomery County, PA; and a CITGO gas station and convenience store in Phoenixville, Chester County, PA, and of stealing a customer’s car at gunpoint during the CITGO robbery. Foster committed these crimes during November and December 2014. In February 2015, Delaware State Police arrested Foster in possession of the stolen car and the semiautomatic pistol. In the United States District Court for the District of Delaware, Foster has been sentenced to ten years in prison for possession of the pistol by a convicted felon. He must serve 57 years of the prison sentence imposed by Judge Kearney after serving the previous ten-year sentence. Foster’s confederates in the robberies have not been identified.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Plymouth Township Police Department, which with the FBI took the lead in the investigation, the Bensalem Township and Schuylkill Township Police Departments, and the Delaware State Police. The case was prosecuted by then Montgomery County Assistant District Attorney and Special Assistant United States Attorney Gabriel C. Magee.

LizMarie Rivera-Torres, 24, and Anthony Ferris, 34, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, were charged today by Indictment with conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minors, and sex trafficking of minors, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

The Indictment alleges Rivera-Torres and Ferris conspired with each other to engage in the sex trafficking of minors between July 22, 2016 and January 20, 2017. The Indictment further alleges that Rivera-Torres and Ferris engaged in the sex trafficking of two particular minors, during two different periods alleged in the Indictment.

If convicted as charged, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment, a mandatory minimum term of 10 years’ imprisonment, supervised release for a minimum term of five years and a lifetime maximum term, a $750,000 dollar fine, mandatory restitution, and a $300 special assessment.

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 the Philadelphia Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Seth Schlessinger.

Montanez Adams, 22, and Robert Holmes, 19, both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania were charged today by Indictment[1] with one count of Hobbs Act robbery, one count of using, carrying, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence, and aiding and abetting, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The charges arise from an armed robbery of a GameStop store located at 4600 Roosevelt Boulevard in Philadelphia, PA on or about January 7, 2017.

If convicted the defendants face maximum possible sentences of life imprisonment.

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

[1] An Indictment or Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Philadelphia – Andrew Carr, 60, of Upper Darby, PA, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno to 132 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. He worked as the “muscle” for a methamphetamine trafficking business, intimidating and threatening violence to collect drug debts. Carr was a member of the Chester (city) Chapter of the Warlocks outlaw motorcycle gang and wore his Warlocks jacket while collecting for the business, which sold approximately $40,000 of methamphetamine monthly in Philadelphia and Delaware County. Carr also sold methamphetamine to his own customers.

Carr was the director of the Upper Darby Township Recreational Gym for over 12 years until he was terminated in 2013. While the director, he was responsible for the Police Athletic League (PAL) programs at the gym. He was convicted following a jury trial in May 2016.

As a result of the investigation, eight members or associates of the drug trafficking business have been convicted, and six of them have been sentenced.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigations with assistance from detectives of the Delaware County Criminal Investigative Division and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Maria M. Carrillo.

Yan Acosta, 29, of Philadelphia, PA, and Ivan Pouerie, 31, of Philadelphia, PA, were each charged today by Indictment[1] with one count of possessing with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin, and one count of possessing with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin within 1,000 feet of a school, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

If convicted the defendants each face a maximum possible sentence of life imprisonment, a ten year mandatory minimum term of imprisonment, a $30,000,000 fine, at least ten years up to a possible lifetime of supervised release, and a $200 special assessment.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), and the Pennsylvania Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew J. Schell.

[1]An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Robert McAndrew, Jr., 51, of Bethlehem, PA was charged today by Information with numerous counts of tax evasion, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The Information charges that the defendant operated a company called NEPA Payroll Services, and that numerous businesses retained NEPA to handle the processing of the payroll and payroll taxes for their employees. It further alleges that these NEPA clients remitted to the defendant’s company the amounts necessary to pay the payroll taxes, but the defendant did not pay all of those funds over the IRS, and instead filed false paperwork with the IRS and used some of the clients’ money – including over $3.7 million from one client -- for his own purposes.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 105 years imprisonment and fines totaling over $5 million.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bea L. Witzleben.

Anthony Tyson, a/k/a “Anthony Moore,” a/k/a “Anthony Johnson,” a/k/a “Basil Moore,” 40, of Philadelphia, was charged today by Indictment with by indictment with one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, one count of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.  According to the Indictment[1], the defendant was found on December 30, 2016 in Philadelphia illegally possessing a Colt revolver, as well as cocaine base (“crack”).

If convicted, the defendant faces up to 35 years of incarceration, of which 5 years is a mandatory sentence, a 3‑year period of supervised release, a $750,000 fine, and a $300 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and the Philadelphia Police Department, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda R. Reinitz.

[1] An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Edward W. Millstein, 54, and Susan P. Halpern, 58, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, were charged today by Indictment1 with criminal tax offenses announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. Millstein and Halpern, who were a married couple, allegedly owe $444,225.53 for the taxable years 2007 through 2011. Millstein was charged with one count of willful attempts to evade tax and two counts of failure to pay taxes, while Halpern was charged with two counts of failure to pay taxes.  If convicted, Millstein faces up to seven years in jail, three years of supervised release, $450,000 in fines, and a $300 special assessment. Halpern faces up to two years in jail, one year of supervised release, $200,000 in fines, and $200 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jason P. Bologna.

Jon Vincent, a/k/a “Nathan Laskoski,” 44, of Lansdale, Pennsylvania, was charged by criminal Information today with one count of Social Security fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. According to the information,[1] after being convicted in the state of Texas, the defendant served a prison term, then escaped from a Texas halfway house in 1996. The information charges that shortly after his escape, the defendant stole the name of the deceased Nathan Laskoski to craft a new identity, obtaining a birth certificate for Laskoski, which he used to apply for a Social Security number in Laskoski’s name. According to the information, the defendant has been living using the deceased victim’s stolen identity since mid-1996. His alleged use of the stolen identity was discovered when a relative of the deceased victim discovered information on the ancestral website “Ancestry.com” indicating that someone was impersonating the decedent.

If convicted, the defendant faces a substantial period of incarceration, a three-year period of supervised release, a fine of up to $500,000 and a special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, the United States Postal Inspection Service and the United States Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, with assistance from the Lansdale Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda R. Reinitz.

[1] An Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Today, United States District Court Judge Legrome D. Davis sentenced Ahmed Kamara, 41 of Collingdale, Pennsylvania, to 84 months’ imprisonment for conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by filing false federal income tax returns, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. Defendant Kamara pleaded guilty to preparing and filing false federal income tax returns, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft on July 18, 2016.

Ahmed Kamara and five co-conspirators were charged with conspiring to file false federal tax returns for themselves and others. As a manager of Medmans Financial Services, a tax preparation business operating out of Philadelphia, Kamara prepared fraudulent federal income tax returns for himself and his clients. From 2008 to 2013, Kamara obtained names, dates of birth, and social security numbers of children in foster care, and falsely claimed that these children were the dependents on the fraudulent federal income tax returns he prepared for himself and his clients. Over this period of time, Kamara prepared 1,217 returns which resulted in a tax loss to the Internal Revenue Service of approximately $7,972,093.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, the City of Philadelphia Office of the Inspector General, and the Social Security Administration OIG- Office of Investigations, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Costello.

Mamadou Billo Barry, age 32 of Newark, New Jersey, was charged yesterday, by Indictment, with conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States and with possession of 15 or more counterfeit or unauthorized access devices (credit cards) announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

The indictment further alleges that Barry possessed, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person, a resident of the State of Michigan, who had a credit card account with a credit union in Michigan. Barry is charged with having encoded the credit card account number, issued to the Michigan resident by his credit union, onto a credit card that Barry possessed. If convicted of the charged offenses, Barry faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 17 years which includes a 2-year minimum mandatory sentence, a fine of up to $750,000, a special assessment of $300 and 3 years of supervised release.

The case was investigated by the United States Department of Homeland Security and the Office of the District Attorney for Delaware County and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Floyd J. Miller.

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

Kyle Hobbs, 24 of Philadelphia, PA was charged today by Information with possession of child pornography, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, forfeiture, restitution, at least 5 years of supervised release up to a lifetime of supervised release, and special assessments of $100 and, if not indigent, an additional $5,000.

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Albert S. Glenn.

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.

Steven G. Dubin, 64, of Warminster, Pennsylvania, was charged in an Indictment[1] with three counts of wire fraud, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

According to the Indictment, Dubin offered services to clients seeking to adopt children. After he submitted his resignation from the Pennsylvania bar, Dubin allegedly failed to inform some clients and prospective clients that he would soon be disbarred. Moreover, after he was disbarred and could no longer accept any new retainer fees, Dubin allegedly continued to accept new retainer fees and represented himself to be an attorney licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania.

According to the Indictment, after clients fired Dubin as their attorney, Dubin falsely promised clients that he would return their remaining retainer fees that he falsely claimed were being held in escrow. In some cases, Dubin allegedly never returned any retainer fees.

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 60 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $750,000 fine, and a $300 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, Office of Disciplinary Counsel, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vineet Gauri.

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

Peterly Netus, 25, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged today by Indictment with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States through claims, three counts of false claims against the United States, and with aiding and abetting, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. According to the Indictment, Netus conspired with others to use stolen or improperly-obtained personal identifying information of others for the purpose of obtaining payment of false, fictitious, and fraudulent tax refunds.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 25 years’ imprisonment, three years’ supervised release, a $1,000,000 fine, and a $400 special assessment.

The case was investigated jointly by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Terri A. Marinari and David J. Ignall.

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

Adrian Abonce, 46, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was charged today by Indictment with production, distribution, and possession of child pornography, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

The Indictment alleges that on or about each of four separate dates (October 30, 2012, April 2, 2013, April 10, 2013 and December 6, 2014), Abonce produced child pornography. The Indictment further alleges that Abonce distributed child pornography on October 15, 2015 and November 3, 2015, and possessed child pornography on June 2, 2016.

If convicted as charged, the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 180 years’ imprisonment, a mandatory minimum term of 15 years’ imprisonment, supervised release for a minimum term of five years and a lifetime maximum term, a $1,750,000 dollar fine, mandatory restitution, and a $700 special assessment.

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 the Philadelphia Police Department’s Special Victims Unit. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Seth Schlessinger.

A Republic of Benin man unlawfully residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was convicted today in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania of conspiring to commit access device fraud, announced Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Louis D. Lappen for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

According to the indictment and evidence at trial, from February through June 2014, Abdou Koudos Adissa was engaged in a conspiracy in which stolen identities were used to file tax returns claiming refunds with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Co-conspirators filed tax returns fraudulently seeking more than $800,000 in refunds, which were loaded onto Green Dot prepaid debit cards and sent via Western Union to Nigeria. In order for the prepaid debit cards to accept direct deposits, they had to be registered using personal identifying information including names, social security numbers and addresses. During a search of the apartment Adissa shared with a co-conspirator, special agents found 106 Green Dot cards in Adissa’s room. Adissa registered the Green Dot cards using stolen IDs and provided his co-conspirators with the direct deposit information related to the cards so that fraudulently obtained refunds could be directed to them. to the evidence produced at trial, he called Western Union 63 times in three months to facilitate transferring these fraudulent refunds to Nigeria.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 28. Adissa faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in prison, a period of supervised release, restitution and monetary penalties. Adissa is pending immigration removal proceedings.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Goldberg and Acting U.S. Attorney Lappen commended special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, who conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. Ignall and Trial Attorney Carl F. Brooker of the Tax Division who prosecuted the case.

Additional information about the Tax Division’s enforcement efforts can be found on the division’s website.

Christine Corazo Holscher, 47, and Mark E. Holscher, 54, of Pennsauken, NJ, were charged yesterday by Indictment with conspiracy to defraud the United States and multiple counts of tax fraud, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. According to the indictment, for several years Corazo Holscher and Holscher, who were then living in Philadelphia, conducted a scheme to defraud the IRS by soliciting the Social Security Numbers and dates of birth from other persons, and then filing false tax returns in the names of those persons. The tax returns filed by the Holschers falsely claimed that those persons had earned income and were entitled to a tax refund. When tax refunds were issued, the Holschers would obtain and keep a portion of each refund for themselves. The refunds issued as a result of the scheme totaled over $2 million.

If convicted, each of the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 131 years in prison and over $10 million in fines.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Bea L. Witzleben and Tiwana L. Wright.

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

James Horton, 25, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was charged today in a three-count Indictment accessing or attempting to access depictions of sexually explicit conduct involving minors, and receiving and distributing or attempting to receive or distribute child pornography announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum possible sentence of 50 years incarceration, 5 years to lifetime supervised release, and $1,000,000 in fines.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Eric L. Gibson.

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

Antoinette Murphy a/k/a “Antoinette Barcalow,” 48 of Holland, Pennsylvania, was charged today by Information[1] with two counts of wire fraud, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

If convicted the defendant, faces a maximum possible sentence of 40 years imprisonment, a $500,000 fine, three years supervised release, and a $200 special assessment.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Linwood C. Wright, Jr.

[1] An Indictment, Information or Criminal Complaint is an accusation. A defendant is presumed

innocent unless and until proven guilty.

An Indictment[1] was unsealed today charging Mohamed Soukouna, 57, of Philadelphia, with two counts of bank fraud, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen.

The Indictment alleges that Soukouna deposited counterfeit checks into bank accounts at TD Bank and Wells Fargo Bank in the names of other persons, and posed as the account holder of a TD Bank account by using a false passport in order to make cash withdrawals from that account before TD Bank discovered that the checks deposited into the account were fraudulent. The indictment further alleges that Soukouna opened accounts in his own name at TD Bank and Wells Fargo Bank, and used his TD Bank account to receive deposits of counterfeit checks while using his Wells Fargo Bank account to receive deposits of cash as payment for his participation in the schemes to defraud.

Soukouna faces a maximum sentence of 60 years’ imprisonment, a five-year period of supervised release, a $2,000,000 fine, and an $200 special assessment and restitution of $52,892.95.

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

[1] An Indictment or Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty

PHILADELPHIA – Dean Volkes, 53, and Donna Fallon, 52, of Long Island, NY, and Devos Ltd., doing business as Guaranteed Returns, located in Long Island, were convicted Wednesday on charges of mail fraud, wire fraud, theft of government property, money laundering conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and false statements, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis Lappen. Volkes and Fallon face substantial sentences of incarceration, as well as a three-year period of supervised release. All three defendants face a possible fine and mandatory payment of full restitution. For Volkes and Guaranteed Returns, restitution is anticipated to be approximately $180 million. Additionally, the jury today ordered defendant Dean Volkes to forfeit bank accounts totaling $127 million.

Volkes was the President, Chief Executive Officer, and sole owner of Guaranteed Returns, a reverse pharmaceutical distributor located in Holbrook, New York. Fallon, who is Volkes’ sister, was the company’s Chief Financial Officer. As a reverse distributor, Guaranteed Returns managed the returns of pharmaceutical products for healthcare providers, including numerous hospitals, pharmacies, and long-term care facilities, as well as Department of Defense facilities. Pharmaceutical manufacturers often allow expired drugs to be returned for a refund. Guaranteed Returns handled this process for healthcare provider clients in exchange for a fee based on a percentage of the return value.

The evidence at trial proved that from approximately 1999 through 2014, Guaranteed Returns promised its clients that it would hold their “indate” (not yet expired) drug products until they expired, and then return them on the clients’ behalf, in exchange for a fee. Instead, Guaranteed Returns, at CEO Volkes’ direction, stole indated drug products that it received from its clients, returned the drugs to manufacturers, and kept the refund money. Volkes created a system in which he classified clients as either “managed” or “unmanaged.” The company returned the indated product that it received from all of its clients. For customers that Volkes designated “unmanaged,” however, Guaranteed Returns kept the full value of the returned product for itself. The evidence demonstrated that through this fraud, Volkes and Guaranteed Returns stole more than $180 million from over 13,000 clients, including more than $20 million from numerous medical treatment facilities operated by the U.S. Department of Defense and other government agencies.

The evidence also showed that Volkes, Fallon, and Guaranteed Returns stole clients’ refund money by diverting a percentage of the refunds into internal company accounts. In fall 2010, Volkes caused the company’s IT staff to write a computer program that allowed Guaranteed Returns to skim a portion of clients’ refund money from both expired and indated products through a computerized accounting adjustment. The CFO, Donna Fallon, then implemented this program over a dozen times, resulting in the theft of approximately $500,000 in just five months.

The jury also found that Volkes, Fallon, and Guaranteed Returns had conspired to launder the proceeds of the fraud. Specifically, the evidence showed that when the defendants returned drugs to the respective manufacturers for refunds, they intentionally combined drugs that had been stolen with drugs that had not been stolen. Consequently, as the defendants knew and intended, the payments that the manufacturers made to the wholesalers would comprise commingled funds – i.e., refunds for drugs that the defendants had stolen from clients, which refunds the defendants intended to keep and did keep for themselves, were commingled with refunds for drugs that were not stolen and that would be forwarded to clients as the defendants were required to do. Afterward, the defendants transferred millions of dollars in commingled funds through the company’s accounts to accounts controlled by Volkes.

Finally, the evidence at trial showed that the defendants obstructed justice in connection with a grand jury investigation. As part of an unrelated investigation, a grand jury subpoena had been served on Guaranteed Returns, requiring the production of various records. In March 2010, Volkes met with his IT department and instructed them to delete data called for by the subpoena and then to obtain a wiping program to ensure that deleted data could not be forensically recovered, which they did. Volkes then directed the head of the company’s IT department to falsely inform federal investigators that this deletion was part of a routine data purge, which he also did. In the same timeframe, March 2010, Fallon concealed from the investigators that in January 2010 she had received the computer hard drives of two former employees whose emails and documents were covered by the subpoena. The investigators discovered Fallon’s concealment and false statements when the hard drives were found locked in a cabinet in Fallon’s office during a judicially-authorized search of the company’s office in April 2011, during which the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Defense Criminal Investigative Service seized almost 30 servers, over 20 computers, and hundreds of boxes of documents.

“The defendants and their company betrayed the trust of their numerous clients through a complex fraud scheme that cheated these victims of $180 million,” said Lappen. “The verdict in this case, which is the culmination of years of work, makes clear that this office and its many law enforcement partners will continue to devote substantial resource to prosecute large scale health care fraud and hold these dishonest businesses and their officers accountable.”

“This long-running scheme appears fueled by sheer greed,” said Michael Harpster, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Philadelphia Division. “The defendants’ boldness is really something to behold: doing business under the company name ‘Guaranteed Returns,’ while merrily pocketing refunds due to clients – among them, the U.S. government.”

The case was investigated by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service and the Philadelphia office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Nancy Rue and Patrick J. Murray.

Joel Lee Quentin Scott, 22, of Philadelphia, PA, and Jonathan Maurice Scott, 33, of Philadelphia, PA, were charged today by indictment with armed bank robbery and a related firearm charge announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment alleges that on or about December 29, 2016, Joel and Jonathan Scott robbed the BB&T Bank located at 1201 Buck Road, Feasterville, PA, of approximately $1,800 in United States Currency. A loaded firearm was brandished during the robbery.

If convicted of the charges, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a mandatory minimum of 7 years’ imprisonment. They also each face a maximum period of supervised release of 5 years, a substantial fine, a $200 special assessment, restitution, and forfeiture of the firearm and ammunition.

The case was investigated by the Lower Southampton Township Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sarah T. Damiani.

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

Elsie Reyes, a/k/a “Elsie Yera”, 59, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was charged today by Information with one count of theft of government funds, announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. According to the Information[1], the defendant concealed her July 1994 marriage from the Social Security Administration in order to receive more Supplemental Security Income benefits than what she was entitled to. The defendant’s alleged actions resulted in a loss to the government of approximately $136,246.70.

If convicted, the defendant faces a period of incarceration, a 3‑year period of supervised release, restitution to the government of $136,246.70, a $250,000 fine, and a $100 special assessment.

The case was investigated by the Social Security Administration, Office of Inspector General, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda R. Reinitz.

[1] An Information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Darnell Peace, 33, of Philadelphia, PA, was charged today by Indictment[1] with 1 count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and 1 count of possession of controlled substances announced Acting United States Attorney Louis D. Lappen. The indictment alleges that on or about September 17, 2016, Peace, who has a prior felony conviction, possessed a HI-Point 9mm Model C, silver and black, semi- automatic firearm, bearing serial number P038255, loaded with 5, 9mm rounds of ammunition in the magazine and one in the chamber. Peace was also in possession of two controlled substances.

If convicted the defendant faces a maximum of 10 years imprisonment.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Virgil B. Walker.

[1]An Indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.