Western District of Washington

Seattle – The former Clerk-Treasurer for the City of Morton in Lewis County is now charged federally with wire fraud in connection with her nine-year scheme to steal nearly $1 million from city coffers, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Tamara (Tammy) Clevenger served as the Clerk-Treasurer for Morton from 2012-2022. In 2024, an audit by the Washington State Auditor uncovered years of embezzlement totaling $937,584. Clevenger is expected to enter a plea to the wire fraud charge next month.

“I commend the State Auditor’s Office for their good work on this case,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “It is critical that all of our government entities have multiple safeguards in place to prevent the theft of hard-earned taxpayer dollars.”

According to the charging information, Clevenger allegedly used a variety of ways to steal funds. Between November 2015 and December 2021, she stole at least $311,727 of cash that citizens had brought in to pay for city services. In some instances, she would write a check from one city account to another to conceal the theft of the cash. She also made unauthorized cash withdrawals with the Morton ATM card.

Between February 2013 and December 2021, Clevenger allegedly stole at least $625,857 by writing checks to herself and depositing them in her bank account. Clevenger would allegedly use checks that had been pre-signed by the mayor for use in emergency situations. Clevenger allegedly used fake vendor invoices to make it appear the checks had been written for a service rendered to the city. Clevenger’s actions used interstate wires to commit the fraud with the transfer of funds between various bank accounts. One example is the transfer of $5,808 in funds from Washington to Umpqua bank servers located outside the state.

Following the audit, the City of Morton established new procedures so that no single person had control of the various banking functions.

The FBI and IRS worked with the Washington State Auditor’s Office on the criminal financial investigation.

The charges contained in the information are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. However, use of a criminal information, the sworn statement of the prosecutor, is an indication that there have been discussions with the defendant and their counsel of an agreement to resolve the case.

Wire fraud is punishable by up to twenty years in prison.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda McDowell. 

Tacoma – A Bremerton, Washington woman was arraigned today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma on a 14-count indictment charging conspiracy, bank fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Heather Marquis, 36, entered pleas of ‘not guilty’ on all counts. Marquis remains detained at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac. Marquis’ co-defendant Emily Vranic, 33, was arraigned and released to the custody of her parents last week. Trial is scheduled in front of U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright on June 16, 2025.

“With an estimated 278 victims, these defendants left a broad swath of damage across Kitsap and Mason Counties,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “The Bremerton Police Department and Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office did important work with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service to identify victims and trace the financial harm they suffered in this case.”

According to records filed in the case, between April 2019 and November 2024, Vranic and Marquis would steal identities in several different ways. Most often, they would steal victims’ mail and use personal documents inside to activate credit cards, open new lines of credit, or gain wholesale access to online bank accounts. The pair would have documents related to their activities mailed to a third-party victim’s address, where they would intercept the mail again. Once they had fully taken over a stolen identity, statements and other records were mailed directly to their own Bremerton address.

Armed with their victims’ identities, the pair ran up credit card debt, made transfers from victim accounts to their own, and even used victim accounts to make their monthly mortgage payments. In one instance, the pair attempted to transfer $35,000 from a vulnerable victim’s account, after a successful transfer of almost $33,000 from the same account. When the transfer was rejected, they repeatedly called the bank posing as the account holder to try to get the fraud alert removed.

The estimated loss from their financial fraud is approximately $620,000.

“The U.S. Mail remains one of the most trusted forms of commerce and communication in this country.  Working to protect the mail system and the citizens it serves from those who wish to harm others while enriching themselves remains our steadfast mission,” said Tony Galetti, Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service. “The allegations made against Vranic and Marquis are staggering. The process to undo the harm done to members of our community, not just financially but emotionally, can be agonizing. From fixing bank accounts to rebuilding credit reports, the harm lasts far longer than the initial crime. I thank Bremerton PD and Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office for the assistance in this case; partnerships across all levels of law enforcement are what bring these kinds of results.”

Conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and bank fraud are punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Aggravated identity theft is punishable by a mandatory minimum two years in prison for each count to run consecutive to any other sentence imposed in the case.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Bremerton Police Department, the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Victoria Cantore.

Seattle – A Seattle grand jury this week indicted a 43-year-old Laguna Niguel, California man on six counts of wire fraud for his scheme to steal nearly $1 million from his employer, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Paul Joseph Welch was the IT manager of Kent, Washington energy manufacturing company Algas-SDI when he allegedly used various schemes to steal more than $950,000 from the company. Welch will be arraigned on the indictment on April 17, 2025.

According to the indictment, Welch worked for the company from 2011 to 2024. He was promoted to Information Technology Manager in 2018. The indictment alleges that as early as 2017, Welch used the company’s Amazon business account to make unauthorized personal purchases from Amazon.com. Between 2017 and 2023, those purchases totaled at least $43,000. Welch primarily purchased electronics such at televisions, laptops and more—all for personal use. In 2019, Welch began using his company credit card for personal purchases through other online retailers such as Apple, Alaska Airlines, Instacart and BestBuy. Between 2019 and 2024, those unauthorized personal purchases totaled at least an additional $60,000.

The scheme really accelerated in January 2021 when Welch began making payments to himself disguised as payments to a computer services company. Welch allegedly created a series of email addresses and payment processor accounts using a business name that was very similar to a legitimate computer services company based in Washington State. Welch then used Algas-SDI company credit cards to pay the computer services company under the guise that the company was providing IT equipment and services to Algas-SDI.  However, the legitimate computer services company had no relationship with Welch and never provided any services or equipment to Algas-SDI. The credit card payments Welch made from Algas-SDI’s credit cards went directly to the payment processor accounts that Welch controlled. Between 2021 and 2024 Welch allegedly used this scheme to transfer approximately $879,175 from company accounts to his own accounts.

Algas-SDI tried to verify the legitimacy of Welch’s activity on multiple occasions, but each time, Welch allegedly provided false or misleading information to cover up his scheme. Algas-SDI employees asked Welch to submit invoices to substantiate his charges, but Welch allegedly emailed phony documents designed to look like invoices from the legitimate computer services company. At one point in 2023, an Algas-SDI accounting employee identified personal purchases on Welch’s company credit card. Welch claimed the charges were inadvertent and said he would repay the company. Welch never repaid the charges and continued to defraud the company through unauthorized personal purchases and more fake vendor charges. In January 2024, alone, Welch allegedly submitted phony invoices to Algas-SDI showing that the computer services company had purportedly invoiced Algas-SDI more than $55,000 for equipment and services in that timeframe.

On January 19, 2024, Algas-SDI employees confronted Welch about the charges from the computer services company accounts that Welch controlled. After Welch again told Algas-SDI that the vendor was a real vendor for the company, the company fired him.

The wire fraud charges represent six of the times Welch emailed the company false statements or invoices purported to be from a legitimate computer services company.

In all, between 2017 and January 2024 Walch secretly made at least 250 fraudulent charges for the third party vendor he controlled. He made at least 140 unauthorized purchases with retailers using the company credit card and at least 100 fraudulent purchases on the company’s Amazon account. While Welch profited some $950,000 from his theft, the loss to ALGAS-SDI was approximately $982,520 due to various fees on the transactions.

Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dane A. Westermeyer.

Seattle – A member of Lummi Nation was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 51 months in prison for Assault by Strangulation, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Joseph Michael Quincy Jefferson, 36, was found guilty in January 2025, following a seven-day jury trial. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Lauren King noted that Jefferson had multiple domestic violence related convictions in tribal court, saying “your abuse of others has become a pattern… You return to strangulation again and again.”

“This case is testament to the importance of our work in tribal communities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “Studies reveal that being a victim of strangulation significantly increases the risk the victim will be killed at the hands of their abuser. Holding Mr. Jefferson accountable now is the best way to protect future victims.”

According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, on the night of April 8, 2023, Jefferson punched, pushed, and strangled his live-in partner. Sitting on her back he used the crook of his elbow to apply pressure to her neck, strangling her and causing her to black out twice. When the victim regained consciousness, she ran from the home barefoot and in her underwear, calling a friend and a neighbor requesting help. The victim went to the Lummi Nation Police Department and to the hospital where she made consistent statements to police and medical care providers. She was found to have a broken nose and other injuries consistent with strangulation. 

At trial, Jefferson claimed he acted in self-defense. During her testimony, the victim minimized Jefferson’s conduct.

In asking for a high-end 57-month sentence, Assistant United States Attorney Celia Lee recounted Jefferson’s history of domestic violence with his two romantic partners and noted that shorter sentences handed down by the Lummi Tribal Court have not changed his behavior. “Given Jefferson’s history, his conduct, and his behavior while under supervision, the Court is frankly left with no viable alternatives to a lengthy term of imprisonment. Thus, a significant custodial sentence at this juncture is appropriate, just, and would promote respect for the law. The government certainly hopes that such a sentence would also provide specific deterrence to Jefferson who has thus far not been dissuaded from violence by his prior terms of incarceration for domestic violence.”

Jefferson has been in custody since his bond was revoked in late October 2024 due to his ongoing contact with the victim in violation of his conditions of pretrial release. He remains in custody pending sentencing.

The case was investigated by the Lummi Nation Police Department and the FBI.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Celia Lee. Ms. Lee serves as a Tribal Liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Ensuring public safety on tribal lands is a critical responsibility of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Washington.

Seattle – A 37-year-old man who was living in a Des Moines, Washington, hotel, is charged federally with four counts of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense, and one count of money laundering announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Dennis Aguilar Huisa was placed under arrest twice last fall when he was found to have possession of fentanyl pills and/or powder, methamphetamine, cocaine and a firearm. Huisa has been in state custody since his final encounter with law enforcement on November 1, 2024.

According to the criminal complaint, Puyallup Police first contacted Huisa on the side of the road in the early hours of August 15, 2023. Huisa said his car had overheated and he and a passenger were waiting for the engine to cool down. The police officer noticed that the license plate on the car did not match the type of vehicle listed in the registration. Huisa was removed from the car while law enforcement determined whether the car or the license plates were stolen. A second officer noticed blue pills in the car. Ultimately the car was impounded. A search revealed about 1,000 fentanyl pills as well as some suspected fentanyl powder. There was also a scale with drug residue in the car.

On September 7, 2024, Puyallup Police responded to a report of a nine-month-old infant who had stopped breathing. Huisa and a woman met the officers outside a box truck the infant in their arms. Law enforcement worked to get the child to respond and breath, medics responded and continued to work on reviving the child.

The law enforcement investigation found evidence that Huisa and the child’s mother has given the infant two doses of Narcan suspecting that the child had been exposed to fentanyl or other drugs. Huisa gave permission to search the box truck. Law enforcement located approximately 115 blue fentanyl pills. On Huisa they found fentanyl powder and over $16,000 in cash.

The infant was taken to Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital. The child was given additional dose of Narcan, and the child’s blood tested positive for fentanyl, amphetamine, and oxycodone. The child survived and was temporarily released to Child Protective Services.

Finally, on November 1, 2024, Auburn Police Department’s Special Investigations Unit served a search warrant on the Des Moines motel where Huisa had been living. In the hotel room they found small packages of fentanyl powder packaged for sale in the toilet. They found additional fentanyl powder, methamphetamine, and cocaine in other places around the room. Officers once again searched the box truck Huisa had been driving and found two kilograms of fentanyl powder and a Polymer 80 ‘ghost gun’ – a gun made without a serial number.

Huisa was charged by criminal complaint on March 12, 2025, and was brought into federal custody today. He was indicted by the grand jury on March 26, 2025, for four counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and money laundering. Huisa is making his initial appearance at 2:00 today.

Possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute is punishable by a mandatory minimum ten years in prison and up to life in prison. Possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime is punishable by a mandatory minimum five years in prison and up to life in prison to run consecutive to the other sentence imposed in the case. Money laundering is punishable by up to twenty years in prison.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint and the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Puyallup Police Department, the Auburn Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Casey Conzatti.

Seattle – A 54-year-old Everett, Washington man will make his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Seattle today at 2:00, after being charged federally in connection with a pipe bomb explosion that destroyed a neighbor’s car, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Steven Goldstine was originally charged in Snohomish County for the suspected hate crime. He is now charged in federal court by criminal complaint with unlawful possession of a destructive device, unlawful possession of ammunition, and unlawful possession of a firearm.

According to records filed in the case, on December 31, 2024, Everett Police responded to reports of an explosion in a car parked at an apartment complex. The victims told police they suspected Goldstine due to prior conflicts they had had with him. The day after the explosion they received a voice message using racial slurs and referencing the explosion in the vehicle. Further analysis of the records led investigators to believe it was Goldstine.

Using video footage from the apartment complex and other cameras in the area investigators determined the bomber’s clothing and direction of travel. When they executed a search warrant at Goldstine’s home law enforcement found a jacket and shoes that appeared to match those seen in the video.  Law enforcement also seized more than 700 rounds of ammunition. Goldstine is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition due to prior felony convictions for burglary, arson and possession of stolen property.

In reviewing Goldstine’s history, law enforcement determined that on September 17, 2020, law enforcement searched Goldstine’s residence following a report that while out in his car he had pointed a gun at protestors. The action was captured on video. In the search of Goldstine’s home in 2020, the firearm was seized by law enforcement. The federal complaint filed this week charges Goldstine with that illegal firearms possession.

Unlawful possession of a destructive device and unlawful possession of a firearm, as charged in this case, are both punishable by up to ten years in prison. Unlawful possession of ammunition is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Everett Police Department, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica Manca. 

Seattle – Three Snohomish County men remain in federal detention tonight following their indictment last week for conspiracy, drug trafficking, and gun crimes, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Percy Levy, 54, Eugene Smith, 69, and Robert O. Baggett, 60, remain at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac. At a hearing today Magistrate Judge Michelle Peterson ordered Baggett held pending trial. The other two defendants have detention hearings later this week and next week.  Jury trial is scheduled in front of Judge John H. Chun on June 9, 2025.

According to records filed in the case, as early as 2023, Levy and Baggett were on the radar of the Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force for dealing cocaine. Baggett repeatedly sold cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine to an undercover officer and identified his boss as Percy Levy. Later, surveillance by law enforcement identified Smith as another conspirator. On March 13, 2025, Smith was arrested after he delivered cocaine and fentanyl powder to an undercover officer at a drug deal at a local casino.

Shortly after Smith’s arrest, officers served a search warrant on Levy’s residence where they found bricks of cocaine,

 fentanyl powder, digital scales, and packaging materials. They also seized a loaded firearm from under the pillow on the bed in the room where they discovered the drugs.

Baggett allegedly repeatedly sold not only drugs but firearms in his dealing with undercover officers.

All three defendants have significant criminal history and are prohibited from possessing firearms. Levy has a criminal history dating back to 1988 with convictions for burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, and robbery. Levy was sentenced to more than 19 years in prison in 2003 but was granted conditional clemency in 2019.

Baggett’s criminal history dates to 1983 and includes 14 felonies including theft and assault.

Smith has criminal history dating back to 1976. He has convictions for robbery, drug trafficking and assault. In 1996 he was sentenced to life in prison under the state’s Third Strike law.  His sentence was conditionally commuted in 2020.

All three men are charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances. Levy is also charged with possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute for the cocaine and fentanyl found in his home and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Both Levy and Baggett are charged with unlawful possession of a firearm.

The charges against Levy are punishable by a mandatory minimum 15 years to life in prison.  The charges against Baggett and Smith are punishable by a mandatory minimum ten years in prison to life in prison. 

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Snohomish Regional Drug Task Force (SRDTF) and the FBI.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Brian Wynne and Cindy Chang.

Seattle – A 38-year-old member of the Lummi Nation will appear in federal court this afternoon charged with illegal firearms possession and two violations of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Joel David Ridley was arrested by Lummi Nation Police on February 23, 2025. Police responded to reports of gunshots and encountered Ridley with a dead eagle in his SUV. 

According to the criminal complaint, a witness on the Lummi Reservation was walking his dog when he heard a gunshot. As he walked home, the witness heard a second shot and saw a person pick up an eagle from the ground.  As the witness was on the phone with police, he saw another eagle fall from a tree on his property. The eagle was badly injured. Police captured the surviving eagle and later transported it to the Humane Society.

Shortly after meeting with the witness, police encountered an SUV in the area that matched the description provided by the reporting party. The vehicle quickly turned into a driveway. A records check revealed the vehicle belonged to Ridley. When police responded to the residence, they observed a dead eagle in the back seat of Ridley’s vehicle. Officers subsequently spoke with Ridley in the driveway and arrested him. 

Police obtained a search warrant for Ridley’s vehicle. Inside, officers found a dead eagle and a .22 caliber Savage rifle concealed between the rear seats. Ridely is prohibited from possessing firearms due to a 2003 conviction for Assault in the First Degree in Whatcom County Superior Court.

Both eagles were taken to the Washington State Humane Society in Bellingham and found to have suffered gunshot wounds. The surviving eagle was too injured to recover and was euthanized. Both eagles were judged to be juvenile bald eagles.

While the Lummi Tribe is permitted to possess, distribute, and transport bald or golden eagles found dead within Indian Country, the permit does not authorize the taking of eagles by gunshot, poison, or trapping.

Unlawful Possession of a Firearm is punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  Violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison and a $100,000 fine.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Lummi Nation Police Department and the FBI.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Celia Lee. AUSA Lee serves as a Tribal Liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Washington.

Seattle – A 56-year-old Fox Island, Washington man was indicted late last month by a federal grand jury for four counts of wire fraud, two counts of mail fraud, four counts of money laundering, and four counts of making and subscribing a false tax return, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. John S. Winslow, a former financial advisor at a national financial services firm, allegedly stole over $920,000 in life savings and inheritance from a former client, a widow in her 70’s. 

“Mr. Winslow took advantage of the victim’s trust to steal from her bank and brokerage accounts,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “He used the victim’s funds to upgrade his lifestyle – buying an island home, installing a hot tub and new appliances, and purchasing a new car and a diamond necklace.”

According to the indictment, Winslow moved funds out of the victim’s brokerage accounts with the financial services firm and into her outside bank account in multiple transactions. He did this to conceal his fraud by placing the victim’s funds outside of the firm’s surveillance system. From the victim’s outside bank account, the funds were transferred into Winslow’s bank accounts, again in multiple transactions. Winslow used his trusted status with the victim to further the fraud. He visited the victim at her home and instructed the victim to call the bank and put the call on speaker. He then told the victim what she should tell the bank. Winslow used the victim’s funds for his own benefit. He falsely claimed to the victim that if she transferred money to him, he would repay her at a higher interest rate than what she was getting from her banks.

To hide the illicit nature of the funds, Winslow allegedly funneled the victim’s funds through extra layers of transactions. For example, Winslow purchased gold coins from an online gold retailer in multiple transactions. He then sold those gold coins to a local brick-and-mortar gold retailer before depositing the proceeds into his bank accounts.

During the fraud-scheme period, Winslow allegedly failed to report the funds that he stole from the victim on his federal tax returns, resulting in a tax loss of approximately $254,000.

Winslow was arraigned on the indictment and entered a ‘not guilty’ plea on March 31, 2025. Trial in front of U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright is scheduled for June 2, 2025.

The wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering counts are representative acts of the alleged scheme and are punishable by up to 20 years in prison. The false-tax-return counts are punishable by up to 3 years in prison.

The charges in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yunah Chung.

Seattle – A 47-year-old resident of Deming, Whatcom County, Washington was convicted last week in U.S. District Court in Seattle of two federal felonies related to his receipt and possession of images of child sexual abuse, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Robert J. Howell Jr. came to the attention of law enforcement in late 2019 when a foreign country police organization alerted Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) that an Ip address associated with Howell Jr’s residence had accessed a website devoted to images of child sexual abuse. Following a two-day jury trial, jurors deliberated about an hour before finding Howell Jr. guilty on April 1, 2025.  U.S District Judge John C. Coughenour scheduled sentencing for July 15, 2025.

According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, after getting the tip from a foreign law enforcement organization, HSI agents sought information on the account associated with the IP address. The IP address was linked to Howell’s home in Deming. On September 15, 2020, federal agents executed a search warrant and seized several dozen electronic devices. A forensic review determined there were more than 90,000 files depicting child sexual abuse on some 21 electronic devices. Many of the images were of the sexual abuse of very young children and included depictions involving extreme violence.

At trial prosecutors specifically proved that between 2016 and 2019, Howell Jr. received five specific files of child sexual abuse material and knowingly possessed many more.

In all more than 75 electronic assets including computers, phones, tablets, hard drives, storage devices, gaming devices, and CDs were seized by law enforcement and have been forfeited to the government.

Howell Jr. faces a mandatory 5 years in prison and up to twenty years in prison when sentenced by Judge Coughenour. The actual sentence will be determined by Judge Coughenour after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Matthew Hampton and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica M. Ly.

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.justice.gov/psc.

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today announced that it will surge FBI assets across the country to address unresolved violent crimes in Indian Country, including crimes relating to missing and murdered indigenous persons.

FBI will send 60 personnel, rotating in 90-day temporary duty assignments over a six-month period. This operation is the longest and most intense national deployment of FBI resources to address Indian Country crime to date. FBI personnel will support field offices in Albuquerque; Denver; Detroit; Jackson, Miss.; Minneapolis; Oklahoma City; Phoenix; Portland, Oreg.; Seattle; and Salt Lake City. The FBI will work in partnership with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Tribal law enforcement agencies across jurisdictions.

FBI personnel will be assisted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit, and they will use the latest forensic evidence processing tools to solve cases and hold perpetrators accountable. U.S. Attorney’s Offices will aggressively prosecute case referrals.

“Crime rates in American Indian and Alaska Native communities are unacceptably high. By surging FBI resources and collaborating closely with US Attorneys and Tribal law enforcement to prosecute cases, the Department of Justice will help deliver the accountability

that these communities deserve,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi.

“The FBI will manhunt violent criminals on all lands – and Operation Not Forgotten ensures a surge in resources to locate violent offenders on tribal lands and find those who have gone missing,” said FBI Director Kash Patel.

Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington Teal Luthy Miller added that “investigating and prosecuting crimes in Indian Country in collaboration with our tribal partners is critical to our shared mission of addressing public safety in our communities. We welcome the opportunity for continued collaboration as we seek justice on behalf of victims of violent crime.”

Indian Country faces persistent levels of crime and victimization. At the beginning of Fiscal Year 2025, FBI’s Indian Country program had approximately 4,300 open investigations, including over 900 death investigations, 1,000 child abuse investigations, and more than 500 domestic violence and adult sexual abuse investigations.

Operation Not Forgotten renews efforts begun during President Trump’s first term under E.O. 13898, Establishing the Task Force on Missing and Murdered American Indians and Alaska Natives. This is the third deployment under Operation Not Forgotten, which has provided investigative support to over 500 cases in the past two years. Combined, these operations resulted in the recovery of 10 child victims, 52 arrests, and 25 indictments or judicial complaints.

Operation Not Forgotten also expands upon the resources deployed in recent years to address cases of missing and murdered indigenous people. The effort will be supported by the Department’s MMIP Regional Outreach Program, which places attorneys and coordinators in

U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the United States to help prevent and respond to cases of missing or murdered indigenous people.

Seattle – A 37-year-old Tacoma, Washington resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to a total term of 52 months for providing drug contraband within a federal prison and 28 supervised release violations, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller.  David A. McKean smuggled balloons of fentanyl and heroin into the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac (“FDC-SeaTac”) inside of his body, and distributed those drugs to other inmates in his unit.  Two of those inmates who received drugs from McKean suffered near-fatal fentanyl poisonings. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge John H. Chun labeled McKean’s conduct “a serious offense,” and noted that it is “critical that deadly drugs be kept out of penal institutions.”

According to the plea agreement and other information filed in the case, McKean appeared at a September 8, 2023 supervised release hearing at the U.S. District Courthouse in Tacoma with heroin and fentanyl on his person.  He was ordered detained at FDC-SeaTac during that hearing and, at some point before his admission to the prison, swallowed balloons of drugs for purposes of smuggling them into the facility. 

Shortly after his arrival at FDC-SeaTac, McKean began distributing the drugs to other inmates.  Two of those inmates who received fentanyl from McKean suffered fentanyl poisonings—one on the evening of September 9, 2023 and another the following morning.  The first overdose had to be reversed by life-saving interventions from other inmates and multiple doses of naloxone administered by Bureau of Prisons (BOP) staff. The second overdose also had to be reversed by multiple doses of naloxone and hospitalization. BOP employees searched McKean’s cell after the overdoses, and found heroin, fentanyl, suboxone, and other suspected contraband inside McKean’s cell.

McKean was also facing 28 admitted supervised release violations that arose during his supervision for a prior federal conviction.  At sentencing, the Court imposed a sentence of four months for the supervised release violations, plus 48 months for McKean’s guilty plea to providing contraband in prison, for a total sentence of 52 months in custody.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dane A. Westermeyer.

Seattle – A 54-year-old Allen, Texas man who was flying from Chicago to Seattle was charged federally with abusive sexual contact for his repeated illegal touching of the victim sitting next to him, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Cherian Abraham, who works for a technology company, and the victim, were interviewed at SEA airport when the plane arrived on March 18, 2025. Mr. Abraham was arrested on Sunday March 23, 2025, and had an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Seattle on Monday, March 24, 2025.

According to the criminal complaint, Abraham was seated next to the 22-year-old victim on the flight.  On three different occasions, the victim reported that he reached under her arm to touch her breast. The first time the victim thought perhaps it was inadvertent contact. The second time, some five minutes later, the victim looked pointedly at Abraham and he withdrew his hand. Apparently undeterred, the victim felt Abraham again poking her with his hand and she verbally confronted him. The victim got out of her seat, contacted the flight attendant, and was moved to a different seat.

When interviewed at SEA airport, Abraham denied touching the victim inappropriately.

An investigation by the responding FBI agent revealed that Abraham had twice before been alleged to have touched fellow passengers inappropriately. On April 24, 2024, a victim reported to the airline’s online customer service portal that Abraham had repeatedly touched her and attempted to put his hand between her thighs. The victim yelled at Abraham but was not able to get the attention of a flight attendant.  On October 9, 2023, Minneapolis Airport Police interviewed Abraham after a victim reported that he had touched her leg with an open hand three times.  The victim told him to stop and contacted the flight crew who put her in a different seat.  When interviewed Abraham denied touching the victim. The victim did not want to pursue charges.

Abraham was released on bond and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on April 7, 2025.

Abusive sexual contact is punishable by up to two years in prison.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the FBI.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ajay Ravindran.

Seattle – The former Controller of a Shelton, Washington, outdoor equipment company was sentenced today to 12 months and one day in prison and three years of supervised release for his embezzlement scheme that stole more than $665,000 from the company, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Jesse Arden Sherman, 63, of Elma, Washington illegally diverted company funds to his own accounts between 2012 and 2018. In addition, Sherman failed to pay taxes on his ill-gotten gain, resulting in a tax debt of $202,196. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright emphasized the economic and non-economic losses experienced by the victim company and its employees.

According to records filed in the case, Sherman began working for Sims Vibration Laboratory Inc. in 2008. In his role as controller, he had complete access and control of the company accounting systems and banking functions. In 2012, he began abusing the trust the company had placed in him, by using a variety of schemes to steal from the company. Sherman made false representations to the company’s owner and President, he created false business records, and he created payroll checks and other checks that he deposited in his own accounts. In some instances, he noted in the company books that the check was “void” even though he had cashed it.

Sherman’s fraud resulted in a loss to the company of at least $665,840. As a Certified Public Accountant Sherman knew that he owed taxes on the money he obtained by fraud, but he failed to pay the $202,196 he owed on his taxes between 2013 and 2018.

In asking the court for an 18-month prison sentence, prosecutors noted that Sherman betrayed his employer’s trust month after month with each fraudulent check or entry in the company books. “Despite personal and professional privileges, Sherman elected to create a multi-faceted fraud scheme, which he deployed repeatedly over the years to unjustly enrich himself. Although he claims his gambling drove his behaviors, Sherman had the means and self-recognition to address this issue and instead of doing so he instead re-committed to his scheme over and over again to the detriment of SVL, SVL employees, SVL business partners, and Sherman’s family.”

Sherman has agreed to make restitution to the company of $665,840 and to the IRS of $202,196. 

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the FBI and the Mason County Sheriff’s Office.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brian Wynne.

Tacoma – A 49-year-old Vancouver, Washington resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 10 years in prison for drug and gun trafficking, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Juan Onofre Flores Carrillo, 49, and his co-defendant Jesus Daniel Valenzuela Ayala, 24, were arrested in March 2024 when law enforcement raided their stash house and seized more than seven pounds of fentanyl, 43 pounds of methamphetamine and an assault rifle equipped with a grenade launcher. At the sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo said, “These controlled substances create significant problems for the community. There are individuals who overdose and die from these substances and those who don’t become addicted and become a drain on everyone.”

According to the criminal complaint, Flores Carrillo aka “El Cholo,” was identified in early 2023 as a significant fentanyl pill dealer in southwest Washington. For over a year, working with confidential informants, law enforcement made a series of significant drug buys from Flores Carrillo. In one instance Flores Carrillo sold an informant 3,000 fentanyl pills. On another occasion he sold the informant a kilogram of crystal methamphetamine. Twice Flores Carrillo sold the informant high-powered firearms: an AR-type rifle that was a “ghost gun” with no serial number, and a Norinco Mak-90 rifle.

In January and February 2024, law enforcement worked to identify the stash house where Flores Carrillo kept his drugs. Flores Carrillo continued to make drug sales of heroin as well as fentanyl. On March 13, 2024, Flores Carrillo agreed to sell 10,000 fentanyl pills. Shortly after he turned over the drugs he was arrested.

On November 13, 2024, Flores Carrillo pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and use of a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

In asking for a ten-year sentence prosecutors wrote to the court, “Firearms are a tool of the drug trade, and the danger of drug trafficking comes not only from the effect of drugs on users but from the violence associated with drug trafficking. The firearms that Flores Carrillo possessed and sold to…a person he believed to be a drug trafficker, are highly dangerous and not intended to be in the hands of drug users or drug traffickers.” In imposing sentence, Judge Estudillo commented, “If there’s firearms involved [in drug trafficking], violence could occur among drug dealers and innocent people could get hurt.

Codefendant Valenzuela Ayala was the only occupant of the stash house and was arrested. He was sentenced to seven years in prison. Both men are citizens of Mexico who will likely be deported following their prison terms.

The case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the Vancouver Police Department, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office Special Investigation Unit, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Zachary Dillon and Max Shiner.

Tacoma – A 50-year-old resident of Westport, Washington, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to Social Security Fraud, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Derek Gochanour admitted that he failed to tell the Social Security Administration that he was able to work, and illegally collected $126,928 in benefits. Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo scheduled sentencing for June 9, 2025.

According to the plea agreement and civil settlement agreement, in April 2001, Gochanour applied for disability insurance benefits from the Social Security Administration (SSA) due to his diagnosis of mitochondrial myopathy – a form of muscle disease. In January 2003, a court found Gochanour was disabled, and he began collecting benefits.  Just two years later, Gochanour obtained his Merchant Mariner Credential from the U.S. Coast Guard indicating that he was physically able to perform shipboard functions.

In January of 2012, the Coast Guard granted Gochanour a medical waiver that required him to submit neurological evaluations regarding the stability of his condition so that he could keep his Merchant Mariner Credential. Gochanour provided the Coast Guard with several of these evaluations.

In 2015, Gochanour and an associate purchased a 41-foot charter fishing boat. Gochanour served as the captain, piloting the boat and helping customers catch fish in the ocean waters off of Westport. However, no wages were ever reported for Gochanour’s work on the charter craft.

In the plea agreement, Gochanour admits that since at least 2015, his medication and lifestyle allowed him to work several months per year and he should have reported that to SSA. For example, in 2015 Gochanour sent the Coast Guard a letter from his neurologist stating that he was able to work and perform duties on the job. However, he never provided that letter to SSA, even though he had received a notice that he needed to inform the agency of any relevant changes -- including if a doctor said his health had improved. In 2022, Gochanour submitted a Continuing Disability Review Report to SSA that did not disclose his improved health, his Merchant Mariner Credential, or his work as a charter ship captain.

Prosecutors have agreed to recommend a sentence of three months in prison followed by three months of home detention. Chief Judge Estudillo is not bound by the recommendation and can impose any sentence allowed by law. Social Security fraud is punishable by up to five years in prison.

In a parallel civil investigation, Gochanour has agreed to pay the government $253,856 of which $126,928 is restitution for the benefits he wrongly received. The remaining amount owed will settle civil claims.

The case was investigated by the Social Security Office of Inspector General (SSA-OIG) and the Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS).

The criminal case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Jessica M. Ly.  The civil case was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Katie Fairchild.

Tacoma – A high-level drug redistributor for a drug ring connected to Aryan prison gangs was sentenced today to 84 months (24 months on count 1 consecutive to 60 months on count 2) in prison for drug and gun possession, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. C’La Morales, 39, of Pierce County, was arrested as part of an extensive drug trafficking investigation of three interrelated drug distribution organizations tied to Aryan prison gangs operating both inside and outside state prisons. Morales served as a key associated of the leader of one distribution ring, Jesse Bailey, who has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Court Judge David Estudillo said, “You took on the responsibility to distribute large quantities of controlled substances. You had to know those were going to … lead to addiction and wreak havoc for those individuals and their families, friends, and loved ones.”

According to records filed in the case, Morales was a trusted member of the drug ring who trafficked fentanyl, heroin, and methamphetamine and possessed multiple firearms. The wiretap evidence in the case revealed that she was purchasing and distributing 10 ounces of heroin and 10,000 fentanyl pills at a time. Morales was well aware of the significant fire power Jesse Bailey kept to protect his drug trafficking activities including fully automatic weapons. 

When law enforcement searched Morales’ storage locker and vehicle, they seized 5,815 fentanyl laced pills that were fraudulently stamped with the imprint for prescription Oxycodone and 480 grams of heroin. Within arm’s reach of the drugs, agents located a loaded Mossberg shotgun, several boxes of 12-gauge shotgun ammunition, and $5,183 of drug trafficking proceeds. In Morales’ car they found additional guns: On the floorboard between the front driver’s seat and passenger seat, law enforcement found a lock box containing two pistols with loaded magazines.

In asking for a ten-year prison sentence, prosecutors wrote to the court with concern about Morales’ drug trafficking history. “Morales is not new to drug trafficking while armed with firearms. In 2019 she was arrested for drug trafficking while armed with a firearm that eventually resulted in convictions for unlawful possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute and unlawful possession of a firearm. Morales committed the current charges while on warrant status for the Pierce County drug court program. Thus, despite her clear drug addiction and need for treatment, it is difficult to trust that she will maintain compliance with treatment and not return to trafficking controlled substances.”

Morales was sentenced to five years of supervised release following prison. This prosecution is one of some two dozen related to a lengthy investigation of South Sound based drug trafficking rings.

On March 22, 2023, Law enforcement made two dozen arrests on federal charges. The coordinated takedown involved ten swat teams and more than 350 law enforcement officers. On that day law enforcement seized 177 firearms, more than ten kilos of methamphetamine, 11 kilos of fentanyl pills and more than a kilo of fentanyl powder, three kilos of heroin, and more than $330,000 in cash from eighteen locations in Washington and Arizona. Earlier in the investigation law enforcement seized 830,000 fentanyl pills, 5.5 pounds of fentanyl powder, 223 pounds of methamphetamine, 3.5 pounds of heroin, 5 pounds of cocaine, $388,000 in cash, and 48 firearms.

The top-level leader of the drug trafficking ring, Jesse Bailey, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 16, 2025, and his wife and co-conspirator Candace Bailey, is scheduled for sentencing on June 13, 2025.

This case 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.

This investigation was led by the FBI with critical investigative teamwork from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Washington State Department of Corrections and significant local assistance from the Tacoma Police Department, Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, and the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force, led by the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Throughout this investigation the following agencies assisted the primary investigators: Washington State Patrol, Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Lakewood Police Department, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Zach Dillon, Max Shiner, and Jehiel Baer.

Seattle – A 31-year-old Seattle resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to three years in prison for two counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft related to his three different fraud schemes, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Westcott Francis-Curley has been in custody since March 2024, following his indictment in August 2023. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez imposed three years of supervised release and ordered $689,675 in restitution to the three victims.

“Mr. Francis-Curley’s fraud spiral stemmed from greed,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “After his employer discovered his theft, he stole from a program designed to keep small businesses afloat during the pandemic. And when those proceeds were gone, he committed identity theft against his former romantic partner. This sentence is an important step to break the cycle of fraud.”

According to records filed in the case, the first scheme began in 2019, when Francis-Curley embezzled money from his then-employer by misusing cloud computing resources and accounts available to him as an employee. Francis-Curley used employer funds and his employee work authorizations to purchase cloud computing resources, then sell or lease them back to the company—paying himself with company money—at many times their market value. Through this scheme he obtained more than $550,000, and he was caught while attempting to obtain another half-million dollars. He spent significant portions of the proceeds on extravagances, such as trips on private jets, luxury hotel stays and a penthouse apartment at Seattle’s Harbor Steps complex. Even after Francis-Curley was caught and fired, he emailed customer service and corporate executives in an effort to receive an additional half-million dollars.

In 2020, Francis-Curley defrauded the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a COVID assistance program designed to help small businesses and their employees weather the pandemic. Francis-Curley filed paperwork claiming that two companies he controlled qualified for assistance, when in fact they had no payroll and did not qualify for relief. He obtained nearly $100,000 and spent much of it on personal goods and services. Program funds were limited, meaning his theft deprived other applicants of the needed assistance.

Finally, in October 2022, Francis-Curley applied for and obtained a credit card in the name of his former significant other. Francis-Curley used the card for more than $1,000 in personal expenditures. The unpaid bill means the damage from the identity theft continues to impact the victim.

In asking the court for the three-year sentence, Assistant United States Attorney David T. Martin wrote of Francis-Curley, “He had a comfortable life and a lucrative job, but that wasn’t enough. Leveraging a bit of Google research and the trust of his employer, Francis-Curley—in his own words—'found a way to make as much money as’ he wanted. Within weeks of commencing the scheme, he was living large: private jets, luxury hotels, cash gifts to friends and family, monthly credit card bills approaching six figures—the list goes on. In two months, he went from paying himself $13,000, to a quarter-million dollars, to—he hoped—a half-million dollars. Only getting caught stopped that unabashed escalation.”

Francis-Curley has agreed to pay restitution to his former employer, to the Small Business Administration, and to the person whose identity he used to obtain the credit card for fraud.

The case was investigated by the FBI.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David T. Martin.

Seattle – A 52-year-old Federal Way, Washington woman was indicted this week by a federal grand jury for three counts of wire fraud and two counts of bank fraud, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Jenni Yoon Jeong Lee allegedly held herself out to elderly members of the Korean community as an investment advisor. In reality, the investments went into accounts controlled by Lee and were used for her personal expenses. Lee allegedly defrauded at least 28 victims of over $3 million that was used for her expenses, her family’s expenses or to pay off earlier investors in the style of a Ponzi scheme.

“Ms. Lee held herself out as an experienced investment advisor offering her victims a guaranteed return on the funds they placed with her,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “However, the indictment notes that none of the money was invested and in fact, nearly $1 million of investor funds were accessed and spent at area casinos.”

According to the indictment, Lee created various business entities with names that made it seem they were financial investment companies. Lee opened and controlled bank accounts for these shell companies.

Lee held herself out as a financial advisor employed at the shell companies. She claimed both orally and in writing that she would place victim investments in funds that would guarantee a safe return, sometimes as high as 10%.  She often represented that the principal was fully guaranteed so there was no risk associated with the investment.

Lee allegedly got the victims to write checks to one of the shell companies for ‘investment,’ or she induced the client to fund a self-directed IRA at a legitimate financial services company and give Lee access to manage the account. Lee would sometimes provide the financial services company with a promissory note to make it appear the client was loaning money to one of Lee’s shell companies. In this way she gained control of the investor funds.

In all Lee took in at least $3 million. Some money was paid back to investors making the full loss amount approximately $2.2 million. Of that, over $900,000 was withdrawn and spent at casinos.

The three counts of wire fraud are for specific transfers of funds from self-directed IRA accounts. The two counts of bank fraud are for depositing client checks into one of the shell corporation accounts. These counts are representative acts of the alleged scheme.

The charges in the indictment are punishable by up to 30 years in prison.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean H. Waite

Tacoma – A high-volume tax preparer in Vancouver, Washington was indicted last week for sixteen counts of aiding and assisting in the preparation of false and fraudulent returns, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Keith Altamirano, 52, operated Integrity Investments, LLC, doing business as Servicios Latinos. Between 2017 and 2021, Altamirano prepared at least 12,000 tax returns. The grand jury alleges that his false entries on customer tax returns cost the U.S. Treasury more than $5 million in tax loss.

Altamirano was arrested late yesterday and will make his initial appearance on the indictment today at 1:00 in Tacoma.

According to the indictment, Altamirano falsified clients’ income tax submissions by listing fake medical expenses, and charitable donations for deductions, listing fake cars for depreciation and expense deductions, and by listing fabricated and inflated business expenses.  Altamirano concealed his fraud by using “White Out” and omitting his name on his clients’ filed returns.

In an unrelated matter, Altamirano was charged last month in Clark County Superior Court, with attempted murder for intentionally crashing into the motorcycle that his son was riding. Altamirano allegedly claimed his car had been stolen and used to hit his son on February 18, 2025. Dash cam video from the vehicle told a different story and Altamirano was arrested and charged.

Aiding and assisting with filing a false or fraudulent tax return is punishable by up to three years in prison per count and a $100,000 fine.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The tax fraud case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).

The tax fraud case is being prosecuted by the Economic Crimes Unit. 

Seattle – The U.S. Department of Justice and Vix Technology (USA) Inc. today resolved a qui tam False Claims Act lawsuitalleging Vix had too many employees to qualify for the $1,066,900 Paycheck Protection loan it received on May 18, 2021. Vix will pay $2,144,114 to resolve the matter. The relator of the qui tam case will receive a percentage of the settlement amount. The relator is the San Francisco company Blockquote that produces public interest internet research, news reporting and investigations.

According to the settlement agreement, on June 24, 2024, Blockquote filed a qui tam action alleging that Vix Technology had improperly received a COVID 19 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration.  To be eligible for the loan a business had to have fewer than 300 employees. Vix has more than 300 employees in its operations around the world and therefore did not qualify for the loan.

Vix Technology is an Australian company that designs, supplies, and operates automated fare collection systems, intelligent transportation systems access, payment, and passenger information display systems for the public transit industry. The company’s U.S. Operations are headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.

Vix does not admit any wrongdoing, but to avoid the uncertainty of litigation, entered into the agreement with the United States paying double damages of $2,144,114. Vix will also pay $20,000 to the relator, Blockquote, for attorney fees and costs.

“The favorable settlement in this case is the product of enhanced efforts by federal agencies such as the Small Business Administration, working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and with private individuals who uncover fraudulent conduct, to recover the product of fraud and penalties as well,” said SBA General Counsel Wendell Davis.

The settlement was negotiated by Assistant United States Attorney Nickolas Bohl.

Seattle – A Tacoma resident, who was previously charged and acquitted in state court in a 2020 downtown Seattle mass shooting, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Seattle to drug trafficking and illegal firearms possession, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Marquise Tolbert, 29, of Tacoma, Washington, was arrested in June 2023, and has been in federal custody since that time. Tolbert is scheduled for sentencing by U.S. District Judge Tana Lin on June 18, 2025.

According to records in the case, Marquise Tolbert admits he possessed a firearm on June 1, 2023. On that day Tolbert was arrested at this Tacoma address on a Washington Department of Corrections (DOC) warrant. A Ruger 5.7 pistol and loaded magazine were found in his residence. Tolbert is prohibited from possessing firearms due to a September 2022 conviction in King County Superior Court for illegally possessing a firearm.

Investigators with the FBI Safe Streets task force, the DEA, and the Seattle Police Gun Violence Reduction Unit were investigating a drug trafficking organization when Tolbert and his coconspirators were heard on a wiretap discussing a shoot-out in Federal Way. From that point on, investigators worked to identify those who were possessing and using firearms as part of their criminal activity. Investigators heard Tolbert discussing his purchase of the Ruger firearm from another member of the conspiracy.  On the day he bought the gun law enforcement, surveilled Tolbert, followed him to his residence, arrested him, and secured the firearm.

Additionally, the investigation determined that Tolbert was involved in distributing controlled substances including oxycodone that was being shipped to Washington State from Arizona.

Illegal firearms possession is punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The drug distribution count is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Under the terms of the plea agreement, prosecutors will recommend no more than seven years in prison for both counts of conviction. The actual sentence will be determined by Judge Lin after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

In 2020, Tolbert was involved in a gang shootout at 3rd Avenue and Pine Street in downtown Seattle. One woman was killed, and seven other bystanders were injured in the gun battle. Tolbert was acquitted on murder and assault charges connected to the case. His attorney’s argued he was not the first to fire in the gang related shooting. He was convicted of illegal firearms possession.

The case was investigated by the FBI, the Seattle Police Department, and the DEA as part of their focus on getting firearms off the streets.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Stephen Hobbs and Michelle Jensen. 

Seattle – A 22-year-old Venezuelan National made his initial appearance this week in U.S. District Court in Seattle, following his arrest in Federal Way, Washington with a large amount of suspected narcotics, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Sebastian Velasquez-Perez was taken into custody at St Francis Hospital after he was treated for a drug overdose. He remains in federal detention pending a hearing scheduled for March 17, 2025.

According to the criminal complaint, on March 8, 2025, Federal Way Police were called to a Federal Way motel when staff discovered Velasquez-Perez unresponsive in his room. The staff administered two doses of NARCAN and performed CPR. Velasquez-Perez was transported to the hospital, and law enforcement obtained a court order to search the room.

In the room law enforcement seized: five bags containing approximately 3.2 kilograms of methamphetamine; 12 bags of a powdery substance that will be tested as a possible controlled substance; five bags of fentanyl pills – approximately 5,000 pills in all; and two bags of black tar substance appearing to be heroin.  Also in the room three cellphones, a digital scale with drug residue, and nearly $8,000 in cash.

There were no documents in the hotel room indicating that Velasquez-Perez was legally present in the United States.

The case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI), and the Valley Narcotics Enforcement Team (VNET).

Seattle – A citizen of Zimbabwe pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to two federal felonies related to his illegal border crossing in the wilderness area between Canada and Western Washington, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Tatenda Banga, 30, was observed twice in 2024 on surveillance cameras near Hozomeen, Washington in the North Cascades. Today Banga pleaded guilty to being an unlawful alien in possession of firearms and possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute. Sentencing is scheduled in front of U.S. District Judge Jamal N. Whitehead on June 12, 2025.

According to the plea agreement, on January 3, 2024, the U.S. Border Patrol detection technology captured an image of an armed person entering the United States near the north end of Ross Lake near Hozomeen, Washington. The image shows a person, later identified as Banga, crossing over the border with a longarm shotgun. Later that day Banga is seen defacing another camera near the border.  Personnel from the Border Patrol and the National Park Service responded and searched for the person pictured in the surveillance, but the subject fled into the woods and was not located. Agents did find a loaded 12-gauge Winchester shotgun that appeared to match the gun in the surveillance image that the subject left behind during his flight from law enforcement. The gun was traced to a firearms dealer in Montreal, but no fingerprint records matching those on the gun were found at the time.

On December 27, 2024, the National Park Service alerted Border Patrol to suspected cross border activity. A National Park Service canoe was discovered near Ross Dam with a machete and food wrappers inside the canoe. RCMP cameras provided an image of someone with a headlamp and backpack moving toward the U.S./Canada border.

While driving Highway 20 (the North Cascades Highway) near the south end of Ross Lake, Border Patrol agents noticed Banga walking on the side of the highway. Banga’s appearance matched the appearance of the individual from the RCMP surveillance images. Banga was contacted for an immigration inspection and had no documents to establish that he had legally crossed into the U.S. or that he was legally present in the U.S. When Banga was taken into custody he was found to have scales, gelatin capsules and about 1.4 pounds of MDMA in his possession.

It was then that Border Patrol Agents recognized Banga as being the same individual who was recorded defacing cameras in the area nearly a year prior. Border Patrol Agents reran the fingerprints found on the shotgun that was recovered on the U.S. side of the border back in January 2024, and the fingerprints on the gun matched to Banga. Information on Banga’s phone also linked him to the shotgun. Banga admits that he unlawfully entered the U.S. while armed with the shotgun.

Being an unlawful alien in possession of a firearm is punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Judge Whitehead will determine the actual sentence after considering the sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Border Patrol Blaine Sector Anti-Smuggling Unit, National Park Service, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI).  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dane A. Westermeyer and Special Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Collins.

Seattle – A 42-year-old Tacoma man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 142 months in prison for wire fraud, for his scheme to steal more than $2 million from his employer, and for then going on the run before sentencing, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. John Whisenant was arrested in July 2023 and pleaded guilty in March 2024. Just before his July 2024 sentencing date, Whisenant sent an email to his pretrial services officer saying, “I’m not ready to go to jail yet.” Despite his efforts to evade police, the FBI located and arrested him on August 14, 2024.

At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Lauren King said, Whisenant’s life had been, “a revolving door of crime and prison time.” Judge King noted that the fraud had “a devastating impact… the financial damage (for the victim company) was extreme.” As for his failure to appear for sentencing, Judge King said, “Your actions have destroyed your credibility before this court.”

“This was a sophisticated fraud scheme motivated by greed,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “Mr. Whisenant bought Porsches and Mercedes and $23,000 airline tickets. He dealt a devastating blow to the company that employed him. Over 20 years he committed 19 fraud offenses related to stealing, swindling, and cheating, but this was the largest. The time is past due for him to be held accountable.”

According to records filed in the case, beginning in October 2018 Whisenant worked in a variety of roles at the online used car sales company.  About a year after he began with the company, Whisenant was promoted into a role where he had access to the company bank accounts and accounting software.

Beginning in about June 2019 and continuing until November 2021, Whisenant used his access to make 57 wire transfers totaling over $2 million into accounts he controlled. Whisenant disguised the transfers as legitimate business expenses in the company’s accounting software with a variety of false entries. Whisenant defrauded the company of $2,084,799.

According to records in the case, Whisenant used some of the money for a lavish lifestyle. He bought luxury automobiles such as Porches and Mercedes. He spent $123,096 for a 2022 Audi E-Tron and bought a $98,100 Tesla. He rented luxury homes in Southern California and purchased two airline tickets to Paris at a cost of nearly $23,000 each. More than $1 million went to pay his credit card debts.

The fraud on the company accounts was discovered when a bookkeeper began a more comprehensive review of the company’s financials in January 2022. Whisenant resigned abruptly in February 2022.

When confronted by the FBI, Whisenant tried to blame the embezzlement on the company CEO. As prosecutors noted in their sentencing memo the impact on the company has been severe. “Whisenant’s fraud seriously harmed his victims. His betrayal “traumatized” his co-workers. His fraud destabilized (victim company’s) finances and inflicted significant financial hardship on its largest shareholder, his family, and other investors. His actions may have ultimately cost (victim company’s) largest shareholder (and CEO) the company.”

Prior to his absconding prosecutors were recommending a seven-year prison sentence. Today, they recommended ten and a half years in prison to account for Whisenant’s disregard for the law and the court. While on the run Whisenant repeatedly swapped-out the SIM card in his phone to hide his location, and trafficked methamphetamine, GHB, Viagra and other pills to support himself.

This is Whisenant’s second federal fraud conviction. He was sentenced for wire fraud in 2017 and over the past two decades was convicted in state court of various credit card and check fraud crimes.

Whisenant has agreed to make full restitution of $2,084,779.

The case was investigated by the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean Waite.

Seattle – A California man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 180 months (15 years) in prison for two federal felonies related to his sex trafficking of adult female victims, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Winston Cornell Burt aka “Dice Capone,” 32, of Hemet, California, was arrested November 6, 2022, after he brutally assaulted a 20-year-old woman and engaged in a rolling gun battle as she fled in a van driven by a man who picked her up from the middle of Aurora Avenue in north Seattle. The sentence will run concurrent with a 176-month sentence imposed in King County Superior Court.

At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge John H. Chun said, “This was horrific criminal conduct – outrageous conduct. He treated (the victims) terribly – and that is an understatement.” Judge Chun ordered Burt to be on 15 years of supervised release following prison.

“Winston Burt is a manipulative and predatory person who has supported a luxurious lifestyle for himself with the prostitution profits of his victims,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “His conduct – badly beating women in his control and engaging in a rolling gun battle when one person tried to escape – put our community at risk. Throughout his adult life, Burt has exhibited nothing other than disregard for the law and a complete lack of respect for women.”

In October 2024, Burt pleaded guilty to the federal charges of Sex Trafficking through Force, Fraud, and Coercion and Unlawful Possession of Firearms. In King County Superior Court, he pleaded guilty to three counts of Assault 2; Drive-by Shooting; Unlawful Imprisonment; and Assault-3.

According to records filed in the case, Burt self-identifies as a “pimp” who led a sex trafficking enterprise through California, Arizona, and Washington. The young women were required to provide all the money they earned in prostitution to Burt. Three women had his name tattooed on their faces – a sign of “ownership.”

On November 2, 2022, Burt assaulted the 20-year-old victim in this case by kicking her, punching her, and pistol whipping her after she indicated she wanted to stop working for Burt. The assault occurred at an Airbnb in south Seattle. Three days later, on November 5, 2022, Burt assaulted the victim again and forced her to strip to her underwear. The victim tried to escape from the rental home by jumping out a third story window. The defendant and two women working for him forced her into a car and drove towards a motel on north Aurora Avenue. Burt was armed with a gun, but the victim was able to get out of the car and ran into traffic on Aurora wearing only her underwear. Burt and his other female sex workers tried to force the victim back into the car, but the victim stayed in the middle of the roadway until finally she was picked up by a driver who saw her in distress.

Even after the victim was driven away in a van, Burt gave chase on Aurora Avenue and fired shots at the van with the victim inside. The driver was eventually able to evade Burt and called the Washington State Patrol for assistance.

Ultimately law enforcement responded to the scene and got the victim to Harborview Medical Center for treatment.

“As this case so horrifically illustrates, human trafficking is a violent crime and, more than that, constitutes modern day slavery,” said W. Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Seattle field office. “Even after the victim took extreme measures to try to escape, including jumping from a third-story window, Mr. Burt cruelly chased, assaulted, and shot at her and the driver who stopped to help her. He engaged in all this violence for what could be the most egregious of purposes: to return to unlawful captivity a human being he viewed, in effect, as his property.  The FBI and our federal, state, and local partners will continue to pursue consequences for violent offenders befitting their crimes, and justice for their victims.”

Burt was arrested on November 6, 2022, as he was attempting to leave the Airbnb in south Seattle. In the car police recovered more than $41,000 in cash, and a firearm. At the time of his arrest Burt was wearing a $29,000 diamond necklace and a watch appraised for $85,000.

Law enforcement determined that Burt had used some of his illegal income to purchase a home in Arizona. When that home was searched, they recovered an additional firearm, methamphetamine and nearly $25,000 in cash.

Burt will forfeit both firearms and more than $72,000 in cash.

In asking for the 15-year sentence and 25 years of supervised release to follow, prosecutors wrote to the court, “Burt is a sex trafficker who used physical, mental, and emotional coercion to prey upon and control his victims for his own financial benefit.  He forced his victims to walk the “track” and arrange dates with sex buyers, thus making them vulnerable to rape, assaults, or arrest.  He also required the victims to follow his “rules,” which included tattooing his name on their faces and earning him at least $2,000 per day through commercial sex.   Despite being a prohibited person, Burt routinely carried firearms and used them to further threaten and control his victims.”

Speaking to the court by phone today, the victim said Burt “gets a thrill from violence and hurting people. I was one of the lucky ones who got away.”

The case was investigated by the FBI, and Seattle Police Department with assistance from the Washington State Patrol (WSP). FBI Phoenix also assisted.

Senior Deputy King County Prosecutor Alexandra Voorhees worked closely with Assistant United States Attorney Kate Crisham on this case.

Seattle – A 50-year-old Seattle man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 90 months in prison for drug trafficking and carrying a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Phuong Nguyen Le was stopped in connection with a drive-by shooting in Seattle’s International District in February 2023 and was indicted in May 2023. Le was taken into custody with a loaded firearm and fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine base. Le was arrested after he fired several shots out of the window of his car in the Little Saigon neighborhood. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge John H. Chun said, Le’s conduct “inflicted serious risk to members of the community.”

“Local and federal law enforcement continue to work to increase safety in the International District. This case is a good example of our office working with the King County Prosecutors Office and the Seattle Police to take the cases where federal prosecution provides the most impact,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller.

On February 24, 2023, Seattle Police officers responded to reports of shots fired at the intersection of 10th Avenue South and South King Street in Seattle. Witnesses at the scene reported a man in a white Mercedes fired a handgun in the air multiple times at the intersection. SPD officers then located the vehicle nearby and found Phuong Nguyen Le driving, with his girlfriend in the passenger seat. Le was the owner of the vehicle. Le ultimately gave consent to search the vehicle. SPD officers seized the following items:

• a Springfield Armory XD-9 9mm caliber pistol, with a round of ammunition in the chamber and a partially loaded magazine;
• an additional Springfield Armory 9mm caliber magazine loaded with ammunition;
• two spent bullet shell casings;
• approximately 83 grams of heroin;
• approximately 135 grams of cocaine;
• approximately 194 grams of suspected fentanyl powder;
• approximately 350 pills suspected to contain fentanyl.

In asking for the 90 -month sentence, prosecutors wrote to the court, “Le was found in possession of multiple controlled substances, including fentanyl, which he intended to distribute to others for his financial gain. Making matters more concerning is the fact that he was armed with a loaded firearm while possessing the controlled substances. Worse still is the fact that Le discharged his firearm while driving through a neighborhood in Seattle. The combination of drug distribution with firearm possession places the community at danger and warrants a substantial custodial sentence.”

Le will be on five years of supervised release following prison.

In April of 2012, Le was convicted of distribution of cocaine base in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. In September of 2020, Le was sentenced to two years in prison for illegal possession of a firearm and illegal possession of drugs

The case was investigated by the Seattle Police Department and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Brian Wynne

Seattle – A Nigerian citizen who was arrested and extradited from the U.K. on an indictment in the Western District of Washington was arraigned today in U.S. District Court in Seattle, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Onomen Uduebor, 38, is charged in a three-count indictment related to a scheme to steal and use income tax data for fraud. The 2019 indictment was unsealed today for Uduebor’s first appearance. Uduebor entered a plea of ‘not guilty’ and trial is scheduled before U.S. District Judge James L. Robart on May 12, 2025.

“This defendant allegedly participated in a conspiracy that involved tricking companies around the United States, including a Tukwila-based company, into providing W-2 information on their employees. Then the conspirators filed fake tax returns in the employees’ names, claiming large refunds and causing chaos for those whose Social Security numbers had been stolen,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller.

According to the indictment, between February 2016 and April 2017, the conspirators created false emails that appeared to come from a company executive asking the Human Resources Department for the W-2 data. The conspirators manipulated the email so that any reply would go to an email address that they controlled.  The conspirators then used the information from the W-2s to file more than 300 bogus tax returns claiming more than $1 million in tax refunds. The conspirators targeted companies across the U.S. in this scheme.

Uduebor is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft.

The wire fraud charges are punishable by up to twenty years in prison. Aggravated Identity Theft is punishable by a mandatory minimum two years in prison to run consecutive to any sentence imposed on the wire fraud counts.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Miriam Hinman. Uduebor was arrested in the United Kingdom in September 2023. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs provided valuable assistance with the extradition process.  

Seattle – A 71–year-old Skagit County man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to receipt and possession of images of child sexual abuse, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Alan Lewis Meirhofer faces a mandatory minimum 15-year prison sentence when he is sentenced by U.S. District Judge John H. Chun on June 2, 2025.

According to records filed in the case, Meirhofer befriended teen boys in the Skagit County area by inviting them to hang out at his residence, where he provided them “gifts’ such as food, clothing, alcohol, cash, and marijuana. When one of the boys borrowed the phone, he noticed that Meirhofer had sent members of a group chat, images of his friends. The teen also saw images of child sexual abuse on the phone. The teens mother alerted police and Meirhofer was arrested in March 2021 and his electronic devices were seized.

The FBI asked the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, (NCMEC) for any cyber tips associated with internet accounts linked to Meirhofer. There were more than a dozen reports of images of child sexual abuse linked to accounts controlled by Meirhofer. On July 17, 2024, Meirhofer was taken into federal custody.

In 1988 Meirhofer was convicted of burglary, kidnapping and rape. In 1990, Meirhofer was convicted of Burglary in the First Degree While Armed with a Deadly Weapon and Assault in the Second Degree. Meirhofer was civilly committed to the sexually violent predator Civil Commitment Center on McNeil Island.  He was released in 2017 as a registered sex offender level 3, the level with the highest risk of reoffending.

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.justice.gov/psc.

The case is being investigated by the FBI, the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office, the Bellingham Police Department, and the Skagit County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson.

Seattle –A King County woman, arrested after law enforcement discovered a drug lab and cache of firearms and explosives inside an RV near a state park, was sentenced today to seven years in prison for possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, and unlawful possession of a machinegun, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Chandler Bennett, 30, and her partner Braiden F. Wilson, were arrested following a May 12, 2024, shooting in rural King County.  At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Lauren King said, “You were taking deliveries of fentanyl at your mobile home… These crimes were egregious. You distributed a large amount of dangerous drugs.”

“Ms. Bennett was a key player in the drug distribution activities, negotiating the prices for fentanyl and other drugs from the couple’s supplier,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “The activities of Ms. Bennett and her co-defendant no doubt contributed to the crisis of fentanyl abuse that continues to plague our communities.”

According to records filed in the case, Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) was investigating Bennett and Wilson for dealing drugs on the dark web, when King County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the RV near Olallie State Park

 when Wilson was shot. The deputies noticed that the RV had surveillance cameras and asked to get access to the recorded video to identify the assailant. Bennett refused to allow law enforcement to enter the RV, so they sought a warrant from a King County Judge.

When law enforcement entered the RV, they found a large cache of weapons as well as fentanyl powder, tablets containing fentanyl, and sundry items associated with the manufacture of tablets, including a manual pill press. Law enforcement located more than two and a half kilograms of fentanyl-laced pills. Law enforcement seized 16 firearms, body armor, silencers, and ballistic shields. They also found gun parts made from 3D printers – making them untraceable. There were multiple destructive devices and literature on the chemistry and manufacturing of explosives, as well as literature on how to convert firearms to fully automatic capability.

Agents and officers also searched two storage units associated with Bennett and Wilson and found two additional pill presses, more controlled substances, and mailing supplies. In all law enforcement seized more than two kilos of fentanyl-laced pills, nearly a kilo of fentanyl powder, and more than three kilos of methamphetamine. Computer and bank records reveal that Wilson distributed controlled substances via his dark web identity more than 2,000 times and he took in more than $287,000 in crypto currency.

Bennett pleaded guilty in October 2024.

In asking for a seven-year prison sentence prosecutors highlighted how Bennett and Wilson’s conduct put others in the community at risk. “The manner in which Bennett and her co-defendant possessed the controlled substances placed others in danger. For the controlled substances Bennett and her co-defendant possessed in their residence, they placed park goers at risk. For the controlled substances she and her co-defendant possessed in the storage unit, they exposed other storage unit customers and facility workers at risk. And these risks are not speculative because when investigators served a search warrant on one of the storage units, they found substances strewn about to such a degree that professional remediation experts needed to be obtained to make the facility safe for occupancy again.”

“For the second time in a matter of days, the great work of the King County Sheriff’s Office is quite evident,” said King County Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall. “Because of the keen observation and perseverance of our patrol deputies, and the steadfastness determination of our Gun Violence Reduction Unit, another criminal contributing to the fentanyl crisis is off the street and unable to put any more members of the community in harm’s way.”

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigation (HSI), the King County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), with assistance from the Washington State Patrol.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Casey Conzatti and Brian Wynne.

Seattle – A 42-year-old Mexican citizen was indicted this week for receiving images of child sexual abuse, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Jaime Neri-Soto was arrested by Bothell Police detectives following an investigation prompted by reports to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). Using those cyber tips investigators were able to identify Neri-Soto as the owner of electronic devices allegedly containing images of child sexual abuse.

According to records filed in the case, in October 2024, WhatsApp alerted NCMEC that a user of its platform had uploaded images of child sexual abuse. In January 2025, the CyberTip was referred to the Bothell Police Department who immediately began work to connect the phone number and IP address to a particular individual. Working with information on the device and internet service providers, law enforcement was able to determine the location of the phone at various times and ultimately identified Neri-Soto.

Following some surveillance, Neri-Soto was arrested and taken to Bothell Police. When he was fingerprinted law enforcement learned he was a previously registered sex offender whose registration was terminated in 2017, when he was turned over to federal authorities for deportation.

Federal authorities were involved in the forensic analysis of the electronic devices Neri-Soto possessed. The cyber review allegedly found numerous images of child sexual abuse on one of the devices. Neri-Soto was charged federally by criminal complaint with receipt of images of child sexual abuse.

The grand jury returned an indictment for receipt of child pornography late yesterday.

The charges are punishable by up to twenty in prison.

Neri-Soto is scheduled for arraignment on March 13, 2025.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case was investigated by the Bothell Police Department and the FBI.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson.

This case was also brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. 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 sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc.

Seattle –A Santa Rosa, California resident, who is a citizen of India, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to six months in prison for Conspiracy to Bring in and Transport Certain Aliens for Profit, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Sushil Kumar, 35, and three others were indicted in connection with a scheme to smuggle non-citizens across the northern border for profit. The group was connected to two smuggling episodes in November and December 2023. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Tana Lin noted that those smuggled into the country are vulnerable. “That they wanted to be in the country doesn’t mean they were not exploited. Each was charged $5,000 to $10,000 which is months or years of their salary in the country from which they were coming… Human smuggling undermines our country’s ability to regulate the border at a real cost,” Judge Lin said.

According to records filed in the case, the two smuggling events involved eight different citizens of India. On November 27, 2023, a motion-activated camera caught multiple people jumping a fence near the Boundary Village Apartments in Blaine, Washington. The fence is a quarter mile east of Peace Arch Park. Border Patrol agents near the apartments saw five people run to a white minivan. The vehicle was stopped by Border Patrol. Five citizens of India were in the van with California resident Bobby Joe Green, 68, as the driver.

When questioned, three of the non-citizens told U.S. Border Patrol agents that they saw Mr. Kumar at Peace Arch Park prior to crossing the border illegally and identified him in 6-pack photo lineups. Two of the non-citizens stated that they communicated with Mr. Kumar via WhatsApp prior to November 27, 2023. One of the non-citizens stated that Mr. Kumar instructed him to jump over a specific fence, and that he sent the non-citizen a screenshot of his live location near the fence. The investigation revealed that Kumar and 26-year-old Rajat Rajat directed the non-citizens on where and how to cross the border. Rajat paid Green to transport the non-citizens from the border. Rajat asked for monetary payments from the non-citizens for being smuggled into the U.S.

Similarly, in December 2023, Rajat met three citizens of India in Peace Arch Park and allegedly directed them how to cross through the park and get into a car driven by Sneha. The car was stopped, and the non-citizens were interviewed. They indicated they had promised to make monetary payments to be smuggled into the U.S. Rajat was picked up near the border after Sneha and the three Indian nationals had been taken into custody.

In asking for an eight-month prison sentence, prosecutors wrote to the court, “Smuggling of non-citizens is a dangerous scheme that profits from exploiting vulnerable individuals while undermining the United States’ ability to regulate its borders and exposing our nation to potential security threats. Mr. Kumar admits that he knowingly and intentionally conspired with his co-defendants to smuggle and transport non-citizens with no lawful right to enter or remain in the United States, and that he engaged in these acts for his own financial gain.”

Three of the four defendants have pleaded guilty. Rajat Rajat, will be sentenced on April 23, 2025. Bobby Joe Green will be sentenced on March 13, 2025. The fourth defendant Sneha, 20, a citizen of India who is in the U.S. on a student visa and goes by just her last name, is scheduled to go to trial on a superseding indictment on May 12, 2025. Sneha was arrested in Renton and released on an appearance bond.

The charges contained in the superseding indictment of Sneha are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI) and the U.S. Border Patrol.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jin Kim and Mike Dion and Special Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Collins.

Seattle – A 30-year-old citizen of Mexico was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to five years in prison for unlawfully possessing a firearm and possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, announced Acting United States Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Jose Gerardo Rodriguez-Montoya was encountered twice by law enforcement – the first time while they were investigating a drug distribution ring bringing narcotics to the area from Arizona. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Jamal N. Whitehead said, “These offenses are serious. You had large quantities of fentanyl and other drugs… Dealing in fentanyl is dealing in death.”

According to records in the case, in March and April 2023, Rodriguez-Montoya was identified as a drug supplier by someone working as a confidential informant. Law enforcement learned that the trafficking organization was expecting a new shipment of narcotics from Arizona, and they saw Rodriguez-Montoya unload a large duffel-bag from a car with Arizona plates and take it into his Federal Way apartment. When law enforcement moved in, they recovered three kilograms of fentanyl powder as well as three kilograms of heroin and various smaller amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl pills. They also found a .45 caliber pistol in the apartment.

Seven months later he was arrested coming out of Snoqualmie Casino after being linked to a burglary and car theft. At the arrest Rodriguez-Montoya was found to have a handgun in his right front pocket.

Rodriguez-Montoya pleaded guilty to the two federal felonies in November 2024.

In asking for the five-year sentence prosecutors noted for the court the latest statistics on fentanyl overdose deaths in our community. “In 2023, the King County Medical Examiner’s office reported 1,085 confirmed overdose deaths related to fentanyl, 778 deaths in 2024, and 99 fentanyl-related deaths in King County so far this year. Fentanyl is estimated to be fifty times stronger than heroin. Even a tiny amount of fentanyl can kill. And Rodriguez-Montoya knows personally the devastating impact of fentanyl. In 2021, his father passed away from an accidental fentanyl overdose while living here in Seattle.”

Rodriguez-Montoya has been in federal custody since his arrest in February 2024.

Judge Whitehead imposed 4 years of supervised release to follow prison should Rodriguez-Montoya return to the U.S.

The case was investigated by Seattle Police department and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Erika Evans.

Seattle – A leader in a nationwide $1.4 million bank fraud scheme pleaded guilty this week in U.S. District Court in Seattle to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Amber Towndrow, 36, was indicted along with coconspirator Darby Canfield, 35, in April 2024. Prosecutors have agreed to recommend no more than eight years in prison for Towndrow when she is sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jamal N. Whitehead on June 12, 2025.

According to records filed in the case, Towndrow and her coconspirators acquired personal identifying information for at least 19 victims nationwide. In Western Washington, the co-schemers used that personal information to register businesses with the Washington Secretary of State. Armed with the business documents and false identification documents such as drivers’ licenses and passports, Towndrow would open business bank accounts at financial institutions where the victim already had a personal savings account. The bank system would link the new business bank account to the real customer’s bank account. The conspirators would then transfer money from the personal bank account to the business account. Towndrow would then use a business account debit card to purchase money orders and high value goods such as designer merchandise or electronics. Towndrow and other conspirators would use various fake IDs to cash the money orders at locations such as Money Tree outlets.

With this scheme Towndrow committed bank fraud and identity theft in Washington, Colorado, Pennsylvania, California, New Jersey, Indiana, and Washington D.C.

The plea agreement details how Towndrow defrauded a victim living in Illinois by creating a company registered in Colorado. Towndrow listed the Illinois victim as the registered owner of the company. Towndrow traveled to a Chase branch in Seattle where she opened a business banking account for the fake company. Towndrow and her coconspirators used online banking to transfer $131,709 from the Illinois victim account to the business account.  Towndrow used the business debit card to purchase 128 U.S. Postal Service money orders totaling $126,653. The money orders were made payable to various people the co-schemers could impersonate with their fake IDs. The conspirators then cashed several of the money orders at various locations in the Seattle area.

The plea agreement admits similar conduct regarding a victim residing in Texas, who was defrauded of $75,000, of which $50,000 was used to purchase MoneyGram money orders across the Seattle area.

Towndrow admits she opened at least 50 business bank accounts and attempted to obtain $1.4 million. She admits she successfully obtained $664,000.

Conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and bank fraud are punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Money laundering is punishable by up to 20 years in prison and aggravated identity theft is punishable by a mandatory minimum two years in prison consecutive to any other sentence imposed in the case.

The case is being investigated by The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Diplomatic Security Service, and the Seattle Police Department.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean Waite.

Seattle– A 33-year-old citizen of China, who was residing in Los Angeles, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to seven years in prison for kidnapping, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller.  Ji Wang was arrested on May 13, 2024, in the Los Angeles area. Wang was identified as one of the kidnappers linked to the May 27, 2023, abduction and assault of a worker at a hot pot restaurant in Bellevue, Washington. At the sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge James L. Robert said, “They not only kidnapped the victim, but brutally assaulted him… It did serious injuries and permanent damage…. It’s about as callous a set of circumstances and as malicious an assault short of actually killing someone.”

According to records filed in the case, Ji Wang was connected to a ring smuggling people across the southern border into the U.S. for a fee. Wang had been illegally smuggled into the U.S. less than two weeks before the kidnapping. The investigation revealed that the victim referred people from China who wanted to cross into the U.S., for the smuggling services. The victim was supposed to collect and transfer smuggling fees from those who used the smuggling services. The victim did not collect as high a fee as the smuggling group anticipated. Wang and a co-schemer traveled to Bellevue in May and physically removed the victim from his work and forced him into a sedan.

The men beat the victim and smashed his face into the cement and dragged him down a set of stairs. Witnesses quickly alerted Bellevue Police. Officers worked with the victim’s girlfriend who placed a video call to the victim’s cellphone. Wang answered the call and showed his face. Police recorded the call and were able to identify Wang.

Wang and his associate dropped the victim at a service station in Bellevue. The victim was critically injured and needed emergency surgery for swelling of the brain. The victim was in a coma for six weeks. He has had four skull surgeries. He spent five months in Overlake hospital.  He has lasting physical and cognitive damage from the assault. The medical bills from the assault are more than $1 million.

In asking for the 8-year sentence prosecutors wrote to the court, “the sentence should also be long enough to deter similarly situated defendants from engaging in such brazen and violent conduct to collect illegal smuggling debts.”

Wang was not legally present in the United States and will likely be deported following his prison term.

The case was investigated by the Bellevue Police Department, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI), and the U.S. Marshal’s Service Task Force.

Tacoma – A key member of a drug distribution ring selling fentanyl pills, methamphetamine, and heroin throughout the Puget Sound region was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 14 years in prison for his role in the conspiracy and for possessing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Michael Slocumb, 46, attempted to evade law enforcement and helped move the drug ring activities to Arizona after the Shelton, Washington, stash house he and his partners operated was raided in December 2022. When law enforcement moved in on the multi-faceted drug conspiracy in March 2023, Slocumb was arrested in his new home in Arizona.

At today’s sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo said about fentanyl pills, “People become addicted to these drugs . . . they end up taking a bad dose and that ends their time on this Earth.” Remarking on Slocumb’s guns, Judge Estudillo said, “The firearms involved here are extremely serious and the types of firearms make me wonder what they may have been used for.”

According to records filed in the case, in the fall of 2022, Slocumb made multiple trips to Arizona to pick up and transport narcotics to the Shelton stash house. Slocumb used the stash house to manufacture fentanyl pills using two different pill presses. When the stash house property was searched on December 9, 2022, law enforcement

 seized more than 640,000 pills containing fentanyl, as well as a kilogram of fentanyl powder and 12 kilograms of methamphetamine, along with more than $81,000 in cash proceeds from drug trafficking. Slocumb was a key partner for the leader of the drug conspiracy.

The stash house property also contained 23 firearms, including a shotgun kept where the drugs were stored, and the pills manufactured. In his car, Slocumb kept several firearms including a loaded .40 caliber pistol behind the front seat. In a suitcase in the trunk were a 9mm handgun with a high-capacity magazine and an AR-15 type rifle with a folding shoulder stock and a loaded 115-round drum magazine. Also in the suitcase was a 9mm firearm silencer.

During this conspiracy, law enforcement intercepted Slocumb and the ringleader Bryson Gill discussing kidnapping a rival drug dealer. Slocumb was surveilling the target’s apartment when law enforcement made a show of being in the vicinity to get Slocumb to leave and ward off any violence.

Following the stash house raid, Slocumb was heard on the wiretap discussing his plan to move drug operations to Arizona. Slocumb and Gill continued their drug trafficking in Arizona until they were arrested in March 2023. When law enforcement searched the Arizona property, they seized approximately 70 firearms and thousands of rounds of ammunition.

Slocumb pleaded guilty in November 2024 to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

In asking for a 15-year sentence, prosecutors wrote to the court, “Slocumb’s conduct in the drug conspiracy involved massive numbers of firearms, as well as ammunition, firearms accessories, large capacity magazines, and a firearm silencer. It is clear that he played a trusted role in partnership with Gill in not just distributing drugs but acting as an enforcer—he took direction from Gill in picking up guns following a trip to get drugs from the stash house, and on another occasion, he conspired with Gill to kidnap a co-conspirator who was a drug redistributor.”

Bryson Gill entered a guilty plea February 7, 2025, to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and conspiracy to commit money laundering, and is scheduled for sentencing on May 9, 2025.

Law enforcement made two dozen arrests on federal charges on March 22, 2023. The coordinated takedown involved ten swat teams and more than 350 law enforcement officers. On that day law enforcement seized 177 firearms, more than ten kilos of methamphetamine, 11 kilos of fentanyl pills and more than a kilo of fentanyl powder, three kilos of heroin, and more than $330,000 in cash from eighteen locations in Washington and Arizona. Earlier in the investigation law enforcement seized 830,000 fentanyl pills, 5.5 pounds of fentanyl powder, 223 pounds of methamphetamine, 3.5 pounds of heroin, 5 pounds of cocaine, $388,000 in cash, and 48 firearms.

The top-level leader of the drug trafficking ring, Jesse Bailey, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 16, 2025, and his wife and co-conspirator Candace Bailey, is scheduled for sentencing on June 13, 2025.

This case 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.

This investigation was led by the FBI with critical investigative teamwork from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Washington State Department of Corrections and significant local assistance from the Tacoma Police Department, Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, and the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force, led by the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Throughout this investigation the following agencies assisted the primary investigators: Washington State Patrol, Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Lakewood Police Department, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Zach Dillon, Max Shiner, and Jehiel Baer.

Seattle – Two brothers from India appeared in court today on a 2022 indictment for multiple counts related to their scheme to sell counterfeit and adulterated drugs in the United States, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Avanish Kumar Jha, 38, and Rajnish Kumar Jha, 35, were arrested in Singapore on April 20, 2023, based on a request from the United States. In January 2025, a judge in Singapore ruled the men could be extradited to the U.S. to face 28 felony charges and the Minister for Law ordered their surrender on February 24, 2025. Both defendants entered pleas of not guilty and trial was scheduled for May 5, 2025, in front of U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez.

“The defendants in this case allegedly made hundreds of thousands of dollars while defrauding people who were clinging to hope that a late-stage cancer medication could save their life. Because of this fraud, victims received counterfeit medication that contained none of the cancer-fighting substance they thought they were ordering,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “This fraud scheme didn’t just steal money; it stole the prospect of more time with loved ones for those battling cancer.”

The investigation of the Jha brothers began in 2019, when investigators reviewed internet postings and other evidence indicating that the Jha brothers and their company, Dhrishti Pharma International, were offering to sell prescription drugs to buyers in the United States and elsewhere. Undercover agents with the Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) began communicating with the Jha brothers and ordered some of their products.  Of particular concern was a “medication” labeled as “Keytruda,” a Merck drug for late-stage cancer. An analysis revealed that the Jha brothers were selling counterfeit Keytruda that contained none of active ingredient that made the authentic product effective. Other products contained contaminants.

The brothers allegedly shipped the counterfeit and adulterated drugs from India. They accepted various means of payment including wire transfers and direct money exchanges. In some cases, they used intermediaries in the United States to pick up cash payments. The drugs were packaged in such a way to avoid detection by international customs or other regulators.

Both men had been detained in Singapore since their arrest in April 2023 based on a provisional arrest request from the United States. The United States submitted a formal extradition request to Singapore in June 2023.

"This case highlights ICE HSI’s commitment to protecting the public from dangerous and fraudulent practices that put vulnerable individuals at risk," said acting Special Agent in Charge of ICE HSI Seattle Matthew Murphy. "The company in question preyed on those in desperate need of lifesaving treatments by offering counterfeit medications that provided nothing but false hope. Thanks to the diligent work of our special agents and our law enforcement partners, we are taking swift action to ensure those responsible are held accountable.”

The case was investigated by the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Criminal Investigations and ICE HSI.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Philip Kopczynski. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs provided valuable assistance with securing the extradition. Significant assistance was provided by law enforcement partners at the U.S. Embassy in Singapore, including the ICE HSI Attaché and the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service Office of Overseas Criminal Investigations, and Singaporean authorities, particularly the Singapore Police Force and Attorney-General’s Chambers.

TACOMA – A 25-year-old Guatemalan man will make his initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Tacoma today for failing to register or update his sex offender registration and re-entering the U.S. following deportation, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Juan Hernandez Zacharias was arrested in Mason County this morning by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigation agents.

Zackarias is charged by criminal complaint with two felonies. The first, failure to register or update his sex offender registration, relates to his sentencing in October 2022 for first degree child molestation. The sentencing documents advise Zackarias that should he leave the state, he must register as a sex offender within three days of returning. Zackarias allegedly did not register as required.

The second charge, reentry of a removed alien, relates to Zackarias’ return following deportation. On January 2, 2024, Zackarias had a removal hearing in Immigration Court. He was ordered removed and on February 4, 2024, he was removed from the United States and transported to Guatemala.

However, on May 16, 2024, Zackarias registered a white van with Washington State plates in his name – indicating that he had returned to Washington.

On December 6, 2024, Zackarias was arrested by Mason County Sheriff’s deputies for failing to register as a sex offender. The arrest was logged in the National Crime Information Center (NCIC). The NCIC system alerted ICE Homeland Security Investigations that Zackarias has an order of removal in place. The federal criminal complaint was sworn and filed with Magistrate Judge David W. Christal on February 21, 2025.

Failure to register or update sex offender registration is punishable by up to ten years in prison. Reentry of a removed alien is punishable by up to two years in prison.

The charges contained in the criminal complaint are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (ICE HSI). The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sean Waite and Special Assistant United States Attorney Katherine Collins. 

Seattle – A King County man, arrested after law enforcement discovered a drug lab and cache of firearms and explosives inside an RV near a state park, was sentenced today to eight years in prison for possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, unlawful possession of a machinegun, and unlawful possession of destructive devices, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Braiden F. Wilson, 29, and his partner, 30- year-old Chandler B. Bennett were arrested following a May 12, 2024, shooting in rural King County.  At today’s sentencing hearing U.S. District Judge Lauren King said, the crimes “were egregious… You distributed a large amount of drugs that cause a danger to our community.”

“Mr. Wilson used the dark web to advertise his potentially deadly wares, shipping fentanyl pills across the country,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “He further placed the lives of the community in danger by stockpiling a cache of weapons and explosives, which he stored adjacent to a state park frequented by the public.”

According to records filed in the case, Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) was investigating Wilson for dealing drugs on the dark web, when King County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the RV near Olallie State Park when Wilson was shot. The deputies noticed that the RV had surveillance cameras and asked to get access to the recorded video to identify the assailant. Bennett refused to allow law enforcement to enter the RV, so they sought a warrant from a King County Judge.

When law enforcement entered the RV, they found a large cache of weapons as well as fentanyl powder, tablets containing fentanyl, and sundry items associated with the manufacture of tablets, including a manual pill press. Law enforcement located more than two and a half kilograms of fentanyl-laced pills. Law enforcement seized 16 firearms, body armor, silencers, and ballistic shields. They also found gun parts made from 3D printers – making them untraceable. There were multiple destructive devices and literature on the chemistry and manufacturing of explosives, as well as literature on how to convert firearms to fully automatic capability.

Agents and officers also searched two storage units associated with Wilson and found two additional pill presses, more controlled substances, and mailing supplies. In all law enforcement seized more than two kilos of fentanyl-laced pills, nearly a kilo of fentanyl powder, and more than three kilos of methamphetamine. Computer and bank records reveal that Wilson distributed controlled substances via his dark web identity more than 2,000 times and he took in more than $287,000 in crypto currency.

Wilson pleaded guilty in October 2024.

Asking for an eight-year prison sentence prosecutors wrote to the court, “Wilson engaged in a comprehensive enterprise to distribute fentanyl-laced pills throughout the country by offering his products for sale on dark web 

marketplaces…  He maintained a veritable armory while engaged in his drug distribution business. Inside the motorhomes Wilson shared with his co-defendant, investigators found an operable machinegun; silencers designed to muffle the report of a discharged firearm; a shotgun stored in a case designed to look like it carried a musical instrument; destructive devices commonly called pipe bombs; and materials to make more destructive devices.”

“This is another example of great work by our patrol deputies, as they went above and beyond on a call that resulted in taking two dangerous criminals off the street,” said King County Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall. “Additionally, I am so proud of the work done by our Gun Violence Reduction Unit.  That team was able to ensure the proper steps were taken in this investigation, and in partnership with several federal agencies, were able to hold these people accountable and ensure justice was served.”

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigation (HSI), the King County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF), the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), with assistance from the Washington State Patrol.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Casey Conzatti and Brian Wynne.

SEATTLE – A citizen of Brazil appeared in U.S. District Court in Seattle today, after being extradited from Switzerland to face a 13-count indictment for wire fraud and conspiracy regarding his bitcoin investment scheme, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Douver T. Braga, 48, lived in Florida between approximately 2016 and 2021 during the bulk of the alleged fraud. The indictment alleges Braga operated a bitcoin investment scheme that was really a Ponzi scheme, as well as an illegal multilevel marketing scheme.

The grand jury returned the indictment in October 2022. It was unsealed last week following Braga’s arrest in Switzerland. Today Braga pleaded “Not Guilty,” and trial was scheduled in front of U.S. District Judge Tana Lin on April 28, 2025.

“Mr. Braga allegedly ran a fraud scheme that harkens back more than a century, but he updated his ‘Ponzi’ scheme with the hot new thing: bitcoin,” said U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. “The victim investors have waited years to see justice. I commend our federal partners at the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation for their diligent work on this case.”

According to the indictment, Braga conspired with others to create a cryptocurrency trading platform called Trade Coin Club (TCC) with an office in Belize. As early as 2016, Braga worked with others to promote TCC, claiming that investors would make money because the TCC had a sophisticated software program that allowed investors to profit on the fluctuating price of bitcoin. Braga also promised that investors could make money by referring other investors to the platform. In reality, there was no investment platform and no sophisticated software. Those who invested early were paid off by later investors as in a Ponzi scheme.

Braga traveled the world promoting TCC: In Thailand in March 2017, in Nigeria and Macau in May 2017.  TCC was promoted on social media and in videos. At various events Braga claimed TCC had as many as 126,000 members in 231 different countries.

Through his false promises of sophisticated investments and high returns, Braga induced tens of thousands of people to entrust over 82,000 bitcoin, valued at over $290 million at the time of investment, and to deposit it with TCC. Braga continued the false representations, creating an “online portal” where investors could track the supposed activity of their investment accounts. The site was a fiction as there was no trading activity.

Braga withdrew and misappropriated investor funds. Between December 2016 and July 2019, at least $50 million in bitcoin was transferred to accounts Braga controlled.

However, by late 2017 and early 2018, investors had trouble accessing their funds. In January 2018, TCC announced to investors that it was ceasing to operate in the United States and was cancelling their accounts.  Many investors were located in the Western District of Washington.

Braga allegedly profited handsomely, while failing to report the earnings to the IRS. In 2017, he received bitcoin worth $30.5 million, but only reported income of $152, 298. In 2018, he reported $73,473 in income but got $13.1 million in bitcoin and in 2019, reported $72,870 in income while he received $10 million in bitcoin.

“The type of scheme Mr. Braga is charged with operating is not new, he just used the allure of a flashy new technology to obscure the well-worn scam.” said W. Mike Herrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Seattle field office. “While the victims in this case waited and wondered about the fate of their investments, he siphoned off millions of dollars for his personal use. This case demonstrates the determination of the FBI and our partners in IRS Criminal Investigation to hold fraudsters accountable, no matter where in the world they may be.”

“The charges against Mr. Braga and his co-conspirators reflect a well-designed scheme to solicit investment in a fake cryptocurrency trading platform from victims around the globe,” said Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher of IRS-Criminal Investigation (CI), Los Angeles Field Office.  “Furthermore, Mr. Braga is alleged to have knowingly ignored and circumvented laws regulating multi-level marketing programs in the U.S.- laws that exist to protect investors from becoming victims in pyramid schemes.  Despite the complexity of this scheme, IRS Criminal Investigation and our partners at the FBI successfully uncovered the evidence necessary to bring forth these charges.”

Braga is charged with 12 counts of wire fraud reflecting 12 wires investors sent to TCC for deposits in their “accounts.” Braga is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The charges are punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations.  A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The case was investigated by the IRS-CI and the FBI.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Mike Dion and Phillip Kopczynski. The U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs provided valuable assistance with securing the extradition.

Tacoma – A 32-year-old Renton, Washington resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 13 years in prison for his role in a drug trafficking ring connected to Aryan prison gangs, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Shawn Ellis was arrested in March 2023, when federal agents moved in following a two-year investigation of drug trafficking activities. A search of Ellis’ car turned up buckets filled with fentanyl pills and kilos of methamphetamine, as well as four firearms – including a machine gun. At today’s sentencing hearing, Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo said, “We’re talking about a significant amount of controlled substances,” and added, “What is really significant and obviously scary for the community is the firearms.”

According to records filed in the case, Ellis was a prolific drug redistributor. He obtained drugs from one branch of the drug conspiracy and sold the drugs to other customers for profit. Ellis would order as much as 30 pounds of methamphetamine at a time. When Ellis was arrested, agents seized the buckets of fentanyl and methamphetamine as well as cocaine and fake Xanax pills. Ellis carried four guns in the car to protect his drugs – a loaded pistol between the driver’s seat and center console, an SK-15 rifle hidden in a violin case, a shotgun and a second loaded pistol. He also had body armor in the vehicle.

In a storage shed Ellis controlled were five additional firearms, a large amount of ammunition, additional body armor and a homemade silencer. Ellis also stored cash, jewelry, precious metals, coins and other collectibles in the shed – proceeds of his drug trafficking.

Ellis has two prior felony drug convictions and is prohibited from possessing firearms.

In asking for a 15-year sentence prosecutors wrote to the court, “But the danger Ellis posed to the community does not stop (with his possession of a silencer). He carried guns in his car along with his drugs, including a pistol which he kept close at hand near the driver’s seat. Ellis also kept in the car a second pistol, a shotgun, and an AR-15 type rifle that he hid in a violin case. This rifle proved to be a machinegun that fires fully automatically. As a felon, Ellis could not legally possess any firearms, much less a silencer or a machinegun.”

Law enforcement made two dozen arrests on federal charges on March 22, 2023. The coordinated takedown involved ten swat teams and more than 350 law enforcement officers. On that day law enforcement seized 177 firearms, more than ten kilos of methamphetamine, 11 kilos of fentanyl pills and more than a kilo of fentanyl powder, three kilos of heroin, and more than $330,000 in cash from eighteen locations in Washington and Arizona. Earlier in the investigation law enforcement seized 830,000 fentanyl pills, 5.5 pounds of fentanyl powder, 223 pounds of methamphetamine, 3.5 pounds of heroin, 5 pounds of cocaine, $388,000 in cash, and 48 firearms.

The top-level leader of the drug trafficking ring, Jesse Bailey, is scheduled to be sentenced on June 13, 2025, and his wife and co-conspirator Candace Bailey, is scheduled for sentencing on May 16, 2025.

This case 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.

This investigation was led by the FBI with critical investigative teamwork from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Washington State Department of Corrections and significant local assistance from the Tacoma Police Department, Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, and the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force, led by the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Throughout this investigation the following agencies assisted the primary investigators: Washington State Patrol, Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Lakewood Police Department, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Zach Dillon, Max Shiner, and Jehiel Baer.

Seattle – A federal felon, still on supervision for a 2012 conviction, pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to four federal felonies concerning drug and gun crimes, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Barry Tremain, 58, of Gold Bar, Washington, was found with guns and drugs on two different occasions in May 2024. U.S. District Judge Jamal N. Whitehead scheduled Tremain’s sentencing for May 22, 2025.

According to records filed in the case, on May 7, 2024, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Deputies attempted to stop a vehicle Tremain was driving for a traffic violation. Tremain attempted to flee but was apprehended. Officers found Tremain with methamphetamine, scales, and $16,000 cash. In the car deputies found a 9mm handgun and additional methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl, and three cell phones. Tremain was taken into local custody and released a short time later.

Tremain was on supervision for a 2012 conviction for drug and firearms crimes, so federal probation visited Tremain’s Gold Bar residence on May 15, 2024. Tremain was found to have a .44 caliber revolver and additional methamphetamine. He had a drug ledger and more than $10,000 in cash.

Tremain pleaded guilty today to two counts of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, and two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm. Tremain is prohibited from possessing firearms due to 2012 convictions for three counts of distribution of heroin, being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, possession of heroin with intent to distribute and possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.

The drug charges are punishable by up to 40 years in prison and the gun charges are punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The actual sentence will be determined by Judge Whitehead after considering the sentencing guidelines and other factors.

The case was investigated by the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Probation.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Hobbs.  

Seattle – A 42-year-old Los Angeles County, California man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to two years in prison for abusive sexual contact aboard an aircraft enroute to Seattle from Burbank, California, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Justin Baker was arrested March 14, 2024, when the Alaska Airlines plane arrived at SEA.  Baker has been in custody since the jury returned its guilty verdict on October 23, 2024.  At sentencing U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour imposed the maximum sentence allowed by law saying, “I was particularly struck by the candor of the victim and her bravery in testifying.”

“This was a calculated and predatory sexual assault on an 18-year-old girl,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. “Mr. Baker underestimated the victim’s strength in testifying, as well as the commitment we have in the Western District of Washington to hold these aircraft offenders accountable.”

According to records filed in the case and testimony at trial, Baker was in the middle seat, with the victim seated to his right next to the wall of the plane. Baker learned the victim was preparing to go to college and was just 18 years old. According to testimony at trial, Baker showed the teen sexually explicit text messages he had on his phone and then draped his jacket over his lap as well as her lower body. The victim attempted to move away from Baker and closer to the wall. He reached under the jacket and groped her leg. Despite the victim saying “No” and moving away when he first tried to touch her, he continued to grope her genitals over her clothing. Then he reached into her top and groped her breast

Ultimately, the victim got out of her seat to contact the flight crew. As she tried to pass by Baker, he groped her buttocks and pulled her back down into her seat. Ultimately the victim was able to leave and report the assault.

Speaking in court today, Assistant United States Attorney Grace Zoller said Baker, “treated the victim like an object… He dehumanized her.”

The victim shared how the assault has “shattered the trajectory of her life.” She told the court about anxiety around airports and flying, and how her family and loved ones “have watched me change in ways I have never imagined.” Her goal she said is to “hold Baker accountable.”

Judge Coughenour said he was imposing the maximum two-year sentence because of the “seriousness of the crime, the harm to the victim and the danger (Baker) poses to the community.”

When released from prison, Baker will be on five years of federal supervision and will be required to register as a sex offender.

The case was investigated by the FBI and the Port of Seattle Police. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kristine Foerster and Grace Zoller.

Tacoma – A 44-year-old Columbia, Indiana man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to four months in prison and a $25,000 fine for conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act for his scheme to interfere with pollution control software on diesel trucks, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. Jonathan Achtemeier pleaded guilty in November 2024, admitting that between 2019 and 2022, he tampered with the monitoring devices on hundreds of vehicles nationwide so those trucks would not detect that their owners removed pollution control hardware systems. Achtemeier advertised his services on the internet and was able to tamper with the monitoring devices in diesel trucks remotely. Between 2019 and 2021 Achtemeier’s company grossed $4.3 million. At sentencing U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright said, “This offense is characterized as a lack of respect for the law and a flaunting of the law…. The harm that comes from this type of offense is serious.”

“From the comfort of his home, this defendant caused environmental damage across the country, tampering with pollution controls on diesel trucks so that they spewed 30 to 1200 times the pollutants of a legally configured truck,” said Acting U. S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller. “His motivation was money – but the rest of us will pay the price with dirty air and contamination in our soil and waterways.”

According to records filed in the case, Achtemeier conspired with mechanics in garages and operators of truck fleets to manipulate the monitoring software installed on diesel trucks. Coconspirators who wanted to disable their trucks’ pollution control hardware system—a process commonly known as “deleting”—sought Achtemeier’s help to trick the truck’s software into believing the emissions control systems were still functional, a process known as “tuning.” Monitoring devices on a deleted truck will detect that the pollution control hardware is not functioning and will prevent the truck from running. Achtemeier disabled the monitoring software on his client’s trucks by connecting to laptops he had provided to various coconspirators. Some of the coconspirators would pass the laptop on to others seeking to have the anti-pollution parameters disabled or modified on their trucks. Once the laptop was hooked up to the truck’s onboard computer, Achtemeier could access it from his computer and tune the computer designed to monitor the pollution control equipment.  Achtemeier could “tune” trucks remotely, which enabled him to maximize his environmental impact and personal profit.

Removing the pollution control equipment and disabling the monitoring device results in trucks polluting at 30 to 1,200 times the level of a truck with pollution control systems.  Tampering with a monitoring device is a violation of the Clean Air Act.

Achtemeier charged as much at $4,500 per truck for work that often took him two hours or less. Achtemeier advertised his services on social media nationwide using images of semi-trucks spewing black exhaust. His company operated under the name Voided Warranty Tuning (VWT) or Optimized Ag.

In their request for an 18-month prison sentence and $100,000 fine, prosecutors wrote to the court, “Achtemeier spent years building a business dedicated to illegal tuning. He advertised his services on diesel-focused Facebook groups like West Coast Trucking where he had access to thousands of truck owners and enthusiasts.  He encouraged customers to pass along his name and even provided them computers so they could help friends and neighbors delete their vehicles and use Achtemeier for tuning. This enabled him to quickly grow his business into a multi-million-dollar enterprise.”

The coconspirators in this case have service garages or truck fleets in various areas of Washington State. The trucks that were altered range from pick-ups such as a Dodge R3500 to Kenworth and Freightliner semi-trucks.

The case was investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Lauren Watts Staniar and Dane Westermeyer, with Special Assistant United States Attorney Karla Perrin.  Ms. Perrin is an attorney with the EPA.

Seattle –Two Estonian nationals pleaded guilty yesterday for their operation of a massive, multi-faceted cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme that victimized hundreds of thousands of people from across the world, including in the United States. As part of the defendants’ guilty pleas, they agreed to forfeit assets valued over $400 million obtained during the conspiracy.

According to court documents, Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin, both 40, sold contracts to customers entitling them to a share of cryptocurrency mined by the defendants’ purported cryptocurrency mining service, HashFlare. Cryptocurrency mining is the process of using computers to generate cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin, for profit.

Between 2015 and 2019, Hashflare’s sales totaled more than $577 million, but HashFlare did not possess the requisite computing capacity to perform the vast majority of the mining the defendants told HashFlare customers it performed. HashFlare’s web-based dashboard, which purported to show customers their mining profits, instead reflected falsified data. Potapenko and Turõgin used the proceeds of the fraud conspiracy to purchase real estate and luxury vehicles and maintained investment and cryptocurrency accounts. Potapenko and Turõgin have agreed to forfeit assets worth, as of the date of the plea, more than $400 million. The forfeited assets will be available for a remission process to compensate victims of the crime. Details about the remission process will be announced at a later date.

Potapenko and Turõgin each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. They are scheduled to be sentenced on May 8 and each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine each defendant’s sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Justice Department thanks the Cybercrime Bureau of the Estonian Police and Border Guard for its support with this investigation. The Estonian Prosecutor General and Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs provided substantial assistance with the extradition. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided extensive assistance to the investigation and the extradition of the defendants.

Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller for the Western District of Washington, Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Special Agent in Charge W. Mike Herrington of the FBI Seattle Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Seattle Field Office investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Friedman and Sok Jiang for the Western District of Washington and Trial Attorneys Adrienne E. Rosen and David Ginensky of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jehiel Baer for the Western District of Washington is handling asset forfeiture aspects of the case.

Individuals who believe they may have been a victim in this case should visit www.fbi.gov/hashflare.

Scheme Victimized Hundreds of Thousands of People in United States and Abroad 

Two Estonian nationals pleaded guilty yesterday for their operation of a massive, multi-faceted cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme that victimized hundreds of thousands of people from across the world, including in the United States. As part of the defendants’ guilty pleas, they agreed to forfeit assets valued over $400 million obtained during the conspiracy.

According to court documents, Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin, both 40, sold contracts to customers entitling them to a share of cryptocurrency mined by the defendants’ purported cryptocurrency mining service, HashFlare. Cryptocurrency mining is the process of using computers to generate cryptocurrency, such as Bitcoin, for profit.

Between 2015 and 2019, Hashflare’s sales totaled more than $577 million, but HashFlare did not possess the requisite computing capacity to perform the vast majority of the mining the defendants told HashFlare customers it performed. HashFlare’s web-based dashboard, which purported to show customers their mining profits, instead reflected falsified data. Potapenko and Turõgin used the proceeds of the fraud conspiracy to purchase real estate and luxury vehicles and maintained investment and cryptocurrency accounts. Potapenko and Turõgin have agreed to forfeit assets worth, as of the date of the plea, more than $400 million. The forfeited assets will be available for a remission process to compensate victims of the crime. Details about the remission process will be announced at a later date.

Potapenko and Turõgin each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. They are scheduled to be sentenced on May 8 and each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Justice Department thanks the Cybercrime Bureau of the Estonian Police and Border Guard for its support with this investigation. The Estonian Prosecutor General and Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs provided substantial assistance with the extradition. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided extensive assistance to the investigation and the extradition of the defendants.

Supervisory Official Antoinette T. Bacon of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller for the Western District of Washington, Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division, and Special Agent in Charge W. Mike Herrington of the FBI Seattle Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Seattle Field Office investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Adrienne E. Rosen and David Ginensky of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew Friedman and Sok Jiang for the Western District of Washington are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jehiel Baer for the Western District of Washington is handling asset forfeiture aspects of the case.

Individuals who believe they may have been a victim in this case should visit www.fbi.gov/hashflare.

Seattle -- U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman announced today that the Western District of Washington collected $1,518145,143 in criminal and civil actions in Fiscal Year 2024. Of this amount, $1,509,282,780 was collected in criminal actions and $8,862,362 was collected in civil actions. 

The Western District of Washington worked with the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and the National Security Division  to obtain the $1.5 billion payment from cryptocurrency exchange Binance. 

“Our office worked closely with Department of Justice components on the criminal case against Binance, in which Binance pleaded guilty to failing to register as a money transmitting business, willfully violating the Bank Secrecy Act and willfully causing violations of U.S. sanctions,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “That $1.5 billion coming through our office, is part of the $4.3 billion criminal fine and forfeiture. It is a record in the Western District of Washington.”

Independently, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington collected $3.8 million in criminal restitution payments, and an additional $8.8 million civil collections. Many of the criminal collections were for cases in which people intentionally failed to pay their income taxes. The owner of a string of coffee stands paid $96,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service for intentionally underreporting his income from the business. A  Snohomish County restaurant owner paid over $511,000 for tax fraud and a Tukwila restaurant owner paid $376,000 so that his $926,902 tax fraud debt was paid in full.

Of the civil collections, the district obtained $217,000 following the sale of Dr. Frank Li’s Spokane medical office building. The payment was applied to Dr. Li’s $2.85 million civil settlement for health care fraud.

Additionally, we collected $1.23 million from Yakima Products, Inc.  These payments (which were in addition to payments made in 2023) satisfied Yakima’s $3 million settlement with the United States, for failing to pay duties on aluminum components imported from the People’s Republic of China. Learn more about the case here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdwa/pr/automobile-accessory-company-yakima-products-inc-settles-allegations-failed-pay-duties

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

Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s office in the Western District of Washington, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $2,864,850 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2024. Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.  A large portion of the forfeitures relate to the indictment of two men operating a business that posted stolen items for sale via online websites. You can learn more about the case here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdwa/pr/two-indicted-buying-stolen-goods-and-selling-them-online-amazon-or-ebay-more-3-million.

Tacoma –The owner of a Vancouver, Washington, business that sought to assist immigrants with a variety of services was sentenced late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 9 months in prison and 4 months of electronic home confinement for tax fraud charges, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Saul Valdez was an unlicensed tax preparer who led his immigrant customers to believe he was filling out their tax forms correctly. Instead, from 2016 through 2018, Valdez inserted a variety of false deductions and expenses on tax returns, lowering the customers’ tax obligations. At sentencing, U.S. District Judge Benjamin H. Settle said, ““This is a serious offense…. deterrence drives this case. This sentence should be one that deters you and sends a message to you and others like you that there will be a real penalty, not probation, for this conduct.”

“This defendant built his business by obtaining inflated tax refunds for clients who had little understanding of the U.S. tax system,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “Ultimately some of these clients were hit with back tax payments, fees, and penalties because this defendant intentionally filed false tax returns on their behalf.”  

“Mr. Valdez abused credits designed to help low-income taxpayers, and his clients incurred over $23,000 in penalties along the way,” said Adam Jobes, Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation’s Seattle Field Office. “We encourage those seeking a tax preparer this season to be vigilant and report dishonest business practices.”

According to records in the case, Valdez operated Conexion Latina and used programs such as TaxAct and TurboTax to prepare clients’ taxes. For tax year 2017, Valdez admits claiming false and fraudulent expenses, donations, and credits on 36 different tax returns. The tax loss on those 36 returns is $54,045.  That is the amount of restitution Valdez has agreed to pay.

Using statistical sampling of 50 of some 2000 returns prepared by Valdez from 2016 through 2018, Valdez admits that the total tax loss for his fraud is $1,293,921.

The case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kristine Foerster.

Seattle – A transporter for a northern border human smuggling conspiracy was sentenced late yesterday in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 15 months in prison, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Jesus Ortiz-Plata, 46, of Independence, Oregon, weas arrested May 23, 2024, in Everett, Washington, with three non-citizens who had been smuggled into the United States from Canada. At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge James L. Robart said it was “callous” to send people across the border in freight cars. “He was a commercial smuggler. He wasn’t doing this for altruistic purposes, he did it for cold hard cash,” Judge Robart said.

“This defendant was a cog in a conspiracy that transported people into the U.S. from across the northern border in an extremely dangerous smuggling scheme loading people into freight cars on trains traveling from Canada into the U.S.,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “These transnational smuggling groups charge thousands of dollars and risk the lives of those trying to reach the U.S. We will continue to investigate these smuggling groups to hold members accountable.”

Since late 2022, as Border Patrol and investigators encountered non-citizens who had illegally attempted to cross the border. As part of the investigation, agents frequently encountered a phone number that was later linked to Ortiz-Plata. After substantial investigation, Ortiz-Plata was identified, and law enforcement obtained court permission to track his location. After months of surveillance and monitoring, on May 23, 2024, Ortiz-Plata traveled from his home in Oregon and was surveilled by agents from Seattle to an apartment in Everett.  Ortiz-Plata left the apartment with three men – all non-citizens who entered his vehicle.  All four were taken into custody.  Two had crossed the border in a freight train car and one claimed he had walked across the border and been picked up on the U.S. side.

On November 20, 2024, Ortiz-Plata pleaded guilty to conspiracy to transport certain aliens for profit.

In asking for the 15-month prison sentence, prosecutors noted that the defendant did not run the smuggling ring, but still played an important role in its success. “Ortiz-Plata admits that he knew the noncitizens he picked up were using freight trains to get into the United States; but nevertheless, he proceeded to participate. Even if he, himself, was not the one directing the noncitizens to jump on, Ortiz-Plata continued to facilitate, and thereby promote, this extremely dangerous smuggling route, multiple times, over the course of at least a year.”

Ortiz-Plata will likely be deported following his prison term.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Border Security Enforcement Team, U.S. Border Patrol, and Border Patrol Air and Marine Group.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Celia Lee and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Collins. 

Seattle – A 65-year-old Shelton, Washington resident was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 90 months in prison for his role in a drug trafficking ring connected to Aryan prison gangs, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Michael Warren was arrested in March 2023, when federal agents moved in following a two-year investigation of drug trafficking activities. A search of Warren’s home in December 2022, turned up two pill presses, more than 640,000 fentanyl pills and a kilo of fentanyl powder to make thousands more. Warren also possessed 23 firearms at the stash house.

At today’s sentencing hearing, Chief U.S. District Judge David G. Estudillo said, “the crime is unquestionably serious based on the amount of narcotics found at his residence and the presence of firearms.”

“This defendant demonstrates that drug trafficking is not just a young person’s game,” said U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. “Mr. Warren was a key drug transporter, manufacturer and distributor causing untold harm in our community.”

According to records filed in the case, Warren served as a trusted co-conspirator to the leader of one of the drug distribution cells led by Bryson Gill. In addition to manufacturing pills and storing them at his Shelton home, Warren drove to Arizona on multiple occasions to pick up methamphetamine and fentanyl from the group’s drug supplier.

Bryson Gill entered a guilty plea today to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and conspiracy to commit money laundering, and is scheduled for sentencing on May 9, 2025.

Law enforcement made two dozen arrests on federal charges on March 22, 2023. The coordinated takedown involved ten swat teams and more than 350 law enforcement officers. On that day law enforcement seized 177 firearms, more than ten kilos of methamphetamine, 11 kilos of fentanyl pills and more than a kilo of fentanyl powder, three kilos of heroin, and more than $330,000 in cash from eighteen locations in Washington and Arizona. Earlier in the investigation law enforcement seized 830,000 fentanyl pills, 5.5 pounds of fentanyl powder, 223 pounds of methamphetamine, 3.5 pounds of heroin, 5 pounds of cocaine, $388,000 in cash, and 48 firearms.

The top-level leader of the drug trafficking ring, Jesse Bailey, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 16, 2025, and his wife and co-conspirator Candace Bailey, is scheduled for sentencing on June 13, 2025.

This case 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.

This investigation was led by the FBI with critical investigative teamwork from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Washington State Department of Corrections and significant local assistance from the Tacoma Police Department, Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, and the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force, led by the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. Throughout this investigation the following agencies assisted the primary investigators: Washington State Patrol, Customs and Border Protection Air and Marine, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Lakewood Police Department, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS).

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Zach Dillon, Max Shiner, and Jehiel Baer.