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South Florida Corrections Officers Sentenced on Federal Civil Rights and Obstruction Charges

Two corrections officers were sentenced to prison today for civil rights and obstruction charges stemming from prisoner abuse that took place at the South Florida Reception Center (SFRC), a state prison in Doral, Fla.



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UBS Clients and Tax Attorney Indicted in Phoenix for Hiding Assets in Secret Foreign Bank Accounts

Phoenix-area businessmen Stephen M. Kerr and Michael Quiel and former San Diego attorney Christopher M. Rusch were charged in Phoenix with conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for concealing millions of dollars in assets in numerous secret Swiss bank accounts held at UBS and elsewhere, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.



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Ohio Man Sentenced to 35 Years in Prison for His Participation in an Online Child Pornography Bulletin Board

Billy Wade Carroll of Dayton, Ohio, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Virginia A. Phillips.



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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the Justice Department 2012 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemorative Observance Program

"Today, we have the privilege – and the solemn duty – of enforcing the civil rights laws and reforms that Dr. King, Congressman Lewis and so many others fought to ensure," said Attorney General Holder.




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Acting Assistant Attorney General Sharis A. Pozen Speaks at the Briefing on Department’s Enforcement Action in Auto Parts Industry

"The auto parts investigation is the largest criminal investigation the Antitrust Division has ever pursued, both in terms of its scope and the potential volume of commerce affected by the alleged illegal conduct," said Acting Assistant Attorney General Pozen.




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Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez Speaks at the National Association of Secretaries of State 2012 Conference

"Whether ensuring that our military voters and civilians serving overseas have the right to register and vote absentee, ensuring individuals are not denied the franchise because of their race or the language they speak, or ensuring that covered states are following federal requirements for providing opportunities to register to vote at designated offices and administering voter lists, our work to protect voting rights is among our most important," said Assistant Attorney General Perez.




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Attorney General Eric Holder’s Task Force Examines Children’s Exposure to Violence in Rural and Tribal Communities

Attorney General Eric Holder’s National Task Force on Children Exposed to Violence today held a public hearing in Albuquerque, N.M., on the challenges rural and tribal communities face in preventing children’s exposure to violence.



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South San Francisco Food Processing Factory Will Pay Nearly $700,000 in Penalties, Spend $6 Million to Update Refrigeration System Safety

Columbus Manufacturing Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Columbus Foods LLC, has agreed to pay a penalty and make significant upgrades to settle Clean Air Act violations.



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Virginia Contractor Sentenced to Serve 37 Months in Prison for Kickback Scheme and Failure to File Tax Return

A Virginia contractor was sentenced today to serve 37 months in prison for participating in a scheme to steer contracts to him for repair, maintenance and renovation work at healthcare and nursing home facilities owned by Medical Facilities of America Inc.



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Justice Department Celebrates 25th Anniversary of False Claims Act Amendments of 1986

The Justice Department today celebrated the 25th anniversary of the 1986 amendments to the False Claims Act. The False Claims Act has been called the single most important tool that American taxpayers have to recover funds when false claims are made to the federal government, including health care fraud, mortgage fraud, and procurement fraud.



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Justice Department Charges St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana for Limited Rental Housing Opportunities for African-Americans

The Department of Justice today filed a lawsuit against St. Bernard Parish, La., alleging that the parish violated the Fair Housing Act by engaging in a multi-year campaign to limit rental housing opportunities for African-Americans in the parish.



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Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to Production of Child Pornography

Michael Wayne Wooten, 60, of Alabaster, Ala., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Inge P. Johnson in the Northern District of Alabama.



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Fort Lauderdale, Florida-Area Halfway House Owner Sentenced to 28 Months in Prison for Participating in Medicare Fraud Kickback Scheme

Natalie Evans, 50, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jose E. Martinez in the Southern District of Florida.



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Patient Recruiter Pleads Guilty in Louisiana Health Care Fraud Scheme

Fred D. Belcher, 61, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James J. Brady of the Middle District of Louisiana to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.



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Assistant Attorney General Laurie Robinson Speaks at the International Conference of Community Courts

"And I want to thank all of you for your commitment to the ideals and principles represented by community courts. These principles – engaging the community, addressing offender behaviors, reducing crime, and ensuring fairness – these have become cardinal tenets of an effective system of justice," said Assistant Attorney General Robinson.




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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the 25th Anniversary of the False Claims Act Amendments of 1986

"For nearly 150 years – since its initial passage during the Lincoln Administration – the False Claims Act has provided ordinary Americans with essential tools to combat fraud, to help recover damages, and to bring accountability to those who would take advantage of the United States government – and of American taxpayers," said Attorney General Holder.




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Assistant Attorney General Tony West Speaks at the 25th Anniversary of the False Claims Act Amendments of 1986

"Our primary weapon for deterring and redressing fraud is the False Claims Act, which makes it illegal to submit fraudulent claims to the government," said Assistant Attorney General West.




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Federal Court Orders Iowa Man and Eight Companies to Pay Employment Taxes

A federal court has ordered James Watts and eight corporations to begin paying employment taxes to the United States on a timely basis, the Justice Department announced today.



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Department of Justice Reaches Settlement with Mercer County School District in West Virginia to Ensure Equal Opportunities for ELL Students

The three-year settlement agreement will ensure that this rural district takes appropriate action to serve its small but growing and widely dispersed ELL population.



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Justice Department Settles Americans with Disabilities Act Lawsuit with Michigan’s Henry Ford Health System

The Justice Department has reached a settlement with the Henry Ford Health System to ensure effective communication with individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing in the provision of medical services.



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Principal of Offshore Brokerage Firm and Las Vegas Stock Promoter Convicted in Miami for $7 Million Stock Manipulation Scam

Jonathan Curshen, 47, the principal of Red Sea Management and Sentry Global Securities, two companies located in San Jose, Costa Rica, that provided offshore accounts and facilitated trading in penny stocks, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud and mail fraud; two counts of mail fraud; and conspiracy to commit international money laundering.



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Utah Man Charged with Tax Fraud and Bank Structuring

federal grand jury in Salt Lake City has returned an indictment charging Michael Lavery with one count of presenting a false claim to the United States and one count of structuring a currency transaction to avoid the reporting requirements, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.



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Florida Man Indicted for Tax Fraud and Identity Theft

A federal grand jury in Fort Pierce, Fla., returned an indictment charging Ernst Pierre with filing false federal income tax returns and identity theft, the Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced.



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Swiss Bank Indicted on U.S. Tax Charges

Wegelin & Co., a Swiss private bank, was indicted today for conspiring with U.S. taxpayers and others to hide more than $1.2 billion in secret accounts and the income these accounts generated from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Justice Department announced today.



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Missouri Woman Pleads Guilty for Role in the Vandalism and Arson of a Mobile Home

Teresa Witthar, 43, of Independence, Mo., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Kansas City to federal hate crime charges in connection with the vandalism and arson of a bi-racial man’s mobile home in 2006.



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Four Individuals and Three Corporations Convicted for Roles in Wire Fraud Conspiracy at New York Presbyterian Hospital

A Manhattan jury today convicted four individuals and three corporations for their participation in an eight-year conspiracy, involving kickbacks in excess of $2 million, to defraud New York Presbyterian Hospital.



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Rehabilitation Agency Owner in Detroit Found Guilty for Role in $2 Million Therapy Fraud Scheme

Detroit-area resident Tariq Mahmud, 55, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and six counts of health care fraud.



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Las Vegas Real Estate Agent and Mortgage Broker Convicted for Their Roles in Mortgage Fraud Scheme

After a seven-day trial, a federal jury in Las Vegas found Jeannie Sutherland and Kelly Nunes guilty of one count of bank fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud.



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Nine Indicted for Conspiring to Distribute, Receive and Possess Child Pornography

Nine men have been indicted in the Western District of Virginia for allegedly conspiring to receive, distribute, possess and access with intent to view child pornography/



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Attorney General Eric Holder Testifies Before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

"I am here today because I understand and appreciate the importance of congressional oversight, and because I am committed to ensuring the highest standards of integrity and professionalism at the Department of Justice," said Attorney General Holder.




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Former Soldier Pleads Guilty in Texas for Leading Role in Scheme to Illegally Obtain Military Recruiting Bonuses

A former soldier pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to obtain a total of at least approximately $240,000 in fraudulent recruiting bonuses from various U.S. military components and their contractor, and to one count of aggravated identity theft for unlawfully using the means of identification of a potential soldier.



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Justice Department Announces Luke J. McCormack as New Chief Information Officer

The Department of Justice today announced that Luke J. McCormack will become its new chief information officer (CIO), arriving in late March.



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Hungarian Citizen Sentenced in Maryland to 30 Months in Prison for Hacking into Marriott Computers to Extort Employment from the Company

Attila Nemeth, 26, a Hungarian citizen, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge J. Frederick Motz to 30 months in prison for transmitting a malicious code to Marriott International Corporation computers and threatening to reveal confidential information obtained from the company’s computers if Marriott did not offer him a job.



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Louisiana Medical Equipment Company Owner Pleads Guilty in $21 Million Fraud Scheme

Chikenna D. Jones, 36, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James J. Brady of the Middle District of Louisiana to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks.



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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at Tulane University Law School

"Today, by participating in this lecture series, we have a unique and important opportunity to think about this 'sacred covenant,' to consider our responsibilities in upholding it, and – of course – to recommit ourselves to the work that distinguished the lives and legacies of George Dreyfous and Mathilde Schwab Dreyfous," said Attorney General Holder




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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the American Bar Association’s National Summit on Indigent Defense

"Across the country, public defender offices and other indigent defense providers are underfunded and understaffed. Too often, when legal representation is available to the poor, it’s rendered less effective by insufficient resources, overwhelming caseloads, and inadequate oversight," said Attorney General Holder.




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Medical Device Company Smith & Nephew Resolves Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Investigation

Smith & Nephew Inc. has entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the Department of Justice to resolve improper payments by the company and certain affiliates in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).



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Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against Lee County, Florida, for Race and National Origin Discrimination

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Fort Myers, Fla., alleges that Lee County discriminated against tradesworkers Marco Ferreira, Eduardo Rivera and Leonides Sepulveda by subjecting them to racial and ethnic harassment over a period of approximately two years beginning in 2007 and ending in 2009.



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Former U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant Sentenced to Prison for Role in Scheme to Steal Military Equipment in Iraq

A former U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) gunnery sergeant was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for conspiring to steal at least 55 electrical generators from USMC bases in Iraq in 2008.



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Californian Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Evading More Than $150,000 in Taxes

William H. Nurick, of Camarillo, Cal., was sentenced to 60 months in prison and ordered to pay $286,443 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Dale S. Fischer in Los Angeles, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.



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Louisiana Patient Recruiter Pleads Guilty in Health Care Fraud Scheme

Rodney D. Taylor, 45, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James J. Brady of the Middle District of Louisiana to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to pay and receive health care kickbacks.



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California Seafood Corporation Sentenced to Pay $1 Million for False Labeling of Seafood Products

Seafood Solutions Inc., a California corporation, was sentenced in federal court in Los Angeles today to pay $1 million in fines and community service payments for its role in the false labeling of frozen fish fillets.



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Nebraska Man Pleads Guilty for Fraudulently Seeking Corrupt Payments in Return for Promising to Obtain Reduction in Associate’s Prison Sentence

Austin Galvan, 30, was charged in a two-count indictment unsealed on Aug. 29, 2011, with wire fraud and obstruction of justice.



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Dover Chemical Corporation in Ohio to Pay $1.4 Million for Unauthorized Production of Chemical Substances

Dover Chemical Corporation has agreed to pay $1.4 million in civil penalties for the unauthorized manufacture of chemical substances at facilities in Dover, Ohio, and Hammond, Ind.



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Fourteen Hospitals to Pay U.S. More Than $12 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Related to Kyphoplasty

Fourteen hospitals located in New York, Mississippi, North Carolina, Washington, Indiana, Missouri and Florida have agreed to pay the United States a total of more than $12 million to settle allegations that the health care facilities submitted false claims to Medicare, the Justice Department announced today.



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Los Angeles Man Sentenced to 77 Months in Prison for Medicare Fraud Scheme Resulting in More Than $18.9 Million in Fraudulent Claims to Medicare

Eduard Aslanyan, 38, of Sherman Oaks, Calif., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Consuelo B. Marshall in the Central District of California.



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Three Men Sentenced for Attempting to Intimidate African-American Students at a Louisiana Middle School

U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Hayes sentenced James Lee Wallis Jr. to eight months in prison, Tony L. Johnson to six months in prison and Brian Wallis to five months in prison.



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Assistant Attorney General Tony West Speaks at the American Constitution Society Southeast Symposium on State Immigration Laws

"In many ways, there is no better proof that comprehensive immigration reform is long overdue than these state statutes. People are understandably frustrated with our broken immigration system, and some states have turned to “self-help” measures like enacting these local statutes," said Assistant Attorney General West.




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U.S. Court Bars Two in Alabama from Preparing Federal Tax Returns

A federal court has permanently barred Paul E. Foster Jr. and Sheree McDade, both of Montgomery, Ala., from preparing federal tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.



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Florida Resident Sentenced to Year in Prison in Connection with Selling Fraudulent Business Opportunities to Consumers

James Cummings, a resident of Boca Raton, Fla., has been sentenced for committing fraud in connection with a coffee machine business opportunity scheme, the Justice Department and U.S. Postal Inspection Service announced today.



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