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Retired Military Official Pleads Guilty to Bribery and Conspiracy Related to Defense Contracts in Afghanistan

A retired U.S. military official pleaded guilty to bribery and conspiracy charges relating to Department of Defense (DOD) contracts in Afghanistan. According to the plea agreement, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago today, First Lieutenant Robert Moore (Ret.) pleaded guilty to conspiracy and bribery charges.



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Kansas Woman Pleads Guilty to Making False Statement to FBI in E-Rate Fraud Investigation

A Kansas woman pleaded guilty to making a false statement to the FBI during an investigation into allegations of fraud against the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) E-Rate program. According to the plea agreement, filed today in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Kan., Mary Jo LaDuron, aka Mary Jo Gault, of Leavenworth, Kan., lied to FBI agents who were investigating allegations of fraud against the E-Rate program.



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Canadian Executive Pleads Guilty to Fraud and Money Laundering Conspiracies Involving a New Jersey Environmental Protection Agency Superfund Site

A former executive of Bennett Environmental Inc. (BEI), a Canadian-based company that treats and disposes of contaminated soil, pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to pay kickbacks and commit fraud at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-designated Superfund site, Federal Creosote, located in Manville, N.J. The former executive also pleaded guilty to participating in a money laundering conspiracy and impeding a proceeding before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.



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Virginia Software Writer Pleads Guilty to Aiding and Abetting Detroit Spam Conspiracy

An individual pleaded guilty today in federal court in Detroit for his role in creating and marketing software designed and used to send bulk commercial e-mails, known as "spam," in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act.



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Fourth Person Pleads Guilty to Illegally Accessing Confidential Passport Files

A fourth individual pleaded guilty today to illegally accessing numerous confidential passport application files.



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Donaldson, Arkansas, Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Civil Rights Charges

Dustin I. Nix, 21, of Donaldson, Ark., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Hot Springs, Ark., to two federal civil rights charges for his role in a conspiracy to force a woman and her young children from their home in Donaldson because she associated with African Americans.



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Little Rock, Arkansas, Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Sex Trafficking and Related Charges

Everett Cooney waived indictment and pleaded guilty in court in Little Rock, Ark., to a federal charge of sex trafficking an underage female. Chief U.S. District Judge J. Leon Holmes accepted Cooney’s guilty plea.



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Former Bell, California, Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Federal Civil Rights Crime

Feliciano Sanchez, 34, a former officer with the Bell, Calif., Police Department, pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in Los Angeles to a federal civil rights charge for sexually assaulting a female motorist. Sanchez admitted that on May 16, 2007, he sexually assaulted the victim by forcing her to provide oral sex after stopping her for a traffic violation, according to documents filed in court.



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Former Wyoming Highway Patrol Trooper Pleads Guilty to Depriving Motorist of Civil Rights by Kidnapping

Franklin Joseph Ryle Jr., a former Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper, pleaded guilty on July 20, 2009, in federal court in Wyoming to depriving a man of his constitutional right to be free from unreasonable seizures by kidnapping him. Ryle also pleaded guilty to one count of using his firearm in relation to the crime.



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Former Military Officer Pleads Guilty to Participating in Scheme to Steal Fuel Worth $39.6 Million from U.S. Army in Iraq

Robert Young, 56, a former captain in the U.S. Army, pleaded guilty today to participating in a scheme to steal fuel worth approximately $39.6 million from the U.S. Army in Iraq.



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Virginia Resident Pleads Guilty to Participating in Scheme to Steal Fuel from U.S. Army in Iraq

A Virginia man pleaded guilty today to participating in a scheme to steal fuel worth approximately $39.6 million from the U.S. Army in Iraq.



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UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax Return, Hid $8 Million in Secret Swiss Bank Accounts

Jeffrey P. Chernick, of Stanfordville, N.Y., pleaded guilty today to charges of filing a false tax return. Chernick, who owns a corporation which represents toy manufacturers in China and Hong Kong, appeared today before Judge James I. Cohn in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., and accepted responsibility for concealing more than $8 million in Swiss bank accounts.



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Contracting Officer’s Niece Pleads Guilty to Obstructing Money Laundering Investigation Related to Bribe Payments

The niece of a U.S. Army major pleaded guilty today for her role in a conspiracy to cover up her uncle’s role in accepting more than $9 million in bribes as a contracting officer in Kuwait. Nyree Pettaway, 37, of Houston, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas to one count of conspiring with her uncle, John C. Cockerham, Carolyn Blake (her aunt and Cockerham’s sister) and others, to obstruct the investigation of money laundering related to Cockerham’s receipt of bribes.



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Arizona Man Pleads Guilty to Mailing Child Pornography

Robert Restuch, 69, of Bullhead City, Ariz., pleaded guilty yesterday to one count of mailing child pornography. As part of his plea agreement, Restuch admitted that he entered a U.S. Post Office in Bullhead City and mailed a package that contained more than 600 images of child pornography, including images depicting children less than 12 years old.



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Key Member of Atlanta Human Trafficking Ring Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking Charges

Juan Cortes-Meza, a Mexican National, pleaded guilty in federal district court in Atlanta to sex trafficking offenses involving young Mexican women and girls. Otto Jaime Larios Perez, a Guatemalan National, also pleaded guilty today to making a false statement to law enforcement and, thereby, obstructing a human trafficking investigation.



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Third Crewmember Pleads Guilty to Charges Related to Pollution from Cargo Ship

A Greek citizen who oversaw the engineering department on board a Dominica-flagged bulk cargo ship pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in New Orleans for violating environmental laws designed to prevent pollution from ships and making false statements to the U.S. Coast Guard.



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Texas Gang Member Pleads Guilty

Almighty Latin King and Queen Nation (ALKQN) member David Hellums, aka "CutThroat," pleaded guilty today to a superseding indictment charging him and 16 co-defendants with various offenses related to alleged narcotics and weapons trafficking, as well as violent activities throughout Texas.



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Control Components Inc. Pleads Guilty to Foreign Bribery Charges and Agrees to Pay $18.2 Million Criminal Fine

Control Components Inc. (CCI), a Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.-based company, pleaded guilty today to violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the Travel Act in a decade-long scheme to secure contracts in approximately 36 countries by paying bribes to officials and employees of various foreign state-owned companies as well as foreign and domestic private companies.



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Husband of Former Army Officer Pleads Guilty to Laundering Money Stolen from Iraq

A New Jersey accountant pleaded guilty today to laundering portions of more than $300,000 stolen from the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in the Republic of Iraq and brought back to the United States by his wife, a former U.S. Army lieutenant colonel.



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Former U.S. Army Contracting Official Pleads Guilty to Accepting Bribes

A former U.S. Army contracting official pleaded guilty today to accepting more than $80,000 in bribes in exchange for providing contract work to two Afghan trucking companies.



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Leader of Colombian Drug Cartel and Former FBI Top-Ten Fugitive Pleads Guilty to Drug, Murder and Racketeering Charges

Diego Montoya Sanchez, 48, one of the leaders of the Norte Valle Colombian drug cartel and a former FBI Top Ten Fugitive, pleaded guilty today in Miami to drug trafficking, murder and racketeering charges.



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Exxon-Mobil Pleads Guilty to Killing Migratory Birds in Five States

Exxon-Mobil Corporation, the world’s largest publicly traded oil and gas company, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Denver to violating the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) in five states during the past five years.



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Fifth Person Pleads Guilty to Illegally Accessing Confidential Passport Files

A fifth individual pleaded guilty today to illegally accessing numerous confidential passport application files. Kevin M. Young, 42, of Temple Hills, Md., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan Kay in the District of Columbia to a one-count criminal information charging him with unauthorized computer access. Young is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 9, 2009.



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Sixth Person Pleads Guilty to Illegally Accessing Confidential Passport Files

A sixth individual pleaded guilty today to illegally accessing numerous confidential passport application files. Karal Busch, 28, of District Heights, Md., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan Kay in the District of Columbia to a one-count criminal information charging her with unauthorized computer access.



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Detroit Area Physical Therapist Pleads Guilty to Causing More Than $1.6 Million in Fraudulent Medicare Billing

Detroit area physical therapist Jay Jha, 45, pleaded guilty today to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program of approximately $18.3 million.



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Stanford Financial Group CFO Pleads Guilty to Charges Related to $7 Billion Scheme to Defraud Investors

James M. Davis, 60, the former chief financial officer of Houston-based Stanford Financial Group (SFG), pleaded guilty today to fraud and obstruction charges related to a $7 billion scheme to defraud investors.



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Son of Imprisoned Spy Pleads Guilty to Two Counts of Federal Indictment

Nathaniel James Nicholson, 25, of Eugene, Oregon, appeared before U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown and pled guilty to the crimes of conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government and conspiracy to commit money laundering.



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Vice President of Missouri Pesticide Company Pleads Guilty to Environmental Crimes

The vice president of a Missouri pesticide company, HPI Products Inc., pleaded guilty today in federal court in Kansas City, Mo., for violating a federal pesticides law designed to provide proper regulatory oversight and prevent improper storage of pesticides.



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Detroit Clinic Manager Pleads Guilty in Medicare Fraud Scheme

Denver resident Lil Vargas-Arias pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Detroit to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program.



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Oklahoma Man Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Solicit Kickbacks in Connection with Government Contract in Afghanistan

An Oklahoma man pleaded guilty today for his role in a scheme to solicit kickbacks in connection with the award of a private security services subcontract to protect U.S. government personnel and contractors in Afghanistan. Bryan Lee Burrows, 42, of Wagoner, Okla., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Court Judge Leonie M. Brinkema in the Eastern District of Virginia to one count of conspiracy to solicit a kickback.



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Former Pacific Consolidated Industries LP Executive Pleads Guilty in Connection with Bribes Paid to U.K. Ministry of Defense Official

The former director of sales and marketing for Pacific Consolidated Industries LP (PCI) pleaded guilty today to charges related to the bribery of a U.K. Ministry of Defense (UK-MOD) official in order to obtain lucrative equipment contracts with the U.K. Royal Air Force, in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).



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Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Receiving Child Pornography

Jeffrey Robert Libman, 42, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., pleaded guilty in Miami today to one count of receiving child pornography.



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Pennsylvania Businessman Pleads Guilty and Is Sentenced in Puerto Rico Corruption Case

Dr. Candido Negron Mella pleaded guilty and was sentenced today for his participation in a corruption scheme involving the 2000 Resident Commissioner campaign of a former governor of Puerto Rico.



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International Hacker Pleads Guilty for Massive Hacks of U.S. Retail Networks

An international computer hacker pleaded guilty today to multiple charges relating to hacking activity and credit card fraud. More than 40 million credit and debit card numbers were stolen from major U.S. retailers as a result of the hacking activity. Albert Gonzalez, 28, of Miami, pleaded guilty today to 19 counts of conspiracy, computer fraud, wire fraud, access device fraud and aggravated identity theft relating to hacks into numerous major U.S. retailers.



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Manager of Bogus Foreign Currency Exchange Ponzi Scheme Pleads Guilty to Obstruction of Justice

Teresa Vogt, a resident of Anaheim, Calif., pleaded guilty on Sept. 15, 2009, to one count of obstruction of justice before U.S. District Court Judge Dale S. Fischer in Los Angeles. Vogt and eight co-defendants were indicted in May 2005 on tax fraud, conspiracy, money laundering and other charges related to the operation of the Genesis Fund.



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Last Defendant in Tennessee Islamic Center Burning Pleads Guilty

Eric Ian Baker pleaded guilty today in federal court in Nashville, Tenn., for his role in burning and vandalizing the Islamic Center of Columbia, Tenn., on Feb. 9, 2008. Baker was charged with violating civil rights that protect religious property and for using fire in the commission of a felony.



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Texas Man Pleads Guilty to Advertising and Possessing Child Pornography

Mark Edwin Cairnes of Jonestown, Texas, pleaded guilty today to advertising and possessing child pornography.



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UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Failing to Report $6.1 Million in Swiss Bank Accounts

A Saddle River, N.J., man pleaded guilty today to failure to file a Report of Foreign Bank or Financial Accounts (F-BAR. Juergen Homann appeared today before Judge Stanley R. Chesler in Newark, N.J., and accepted responsibility for concealing more than $5 million in Swiss bank accounts.



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Detroit-Area Rehabilition Facility Executive Pleads Guilty To $18.2 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

Suresh Chand pleaded guilty today to participating in multiple conspiracies to defraud the Medicare program and to launder the proceeds of the fraud.



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Polembros Shipping LTD. Pleads Guilty to Crimes Related to Pollution from Cargo Ship Traveling to New Orleans

Polembros Shipping LTD pleaded guilty today for violating anti-pollution laws, ship safety laws, and making false statements during a U.S. Coast Guard investigation of the M/V Theotokos.



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Owner of Tennesse Salvage and Demolition Company Pleads Guilty to Environmental Crimes

Gary Fillers pleaded guilty to one criminal felony count for conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act’s “work practice standards” related to the proper stripping, bagging, removal and disposal of asbestos.



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Seattle Area UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Filing a False Tax Return

According to court documents and statements made in court, Cittadini, a retired sales manager for Boeing, failed to report income from bank accounts under his control at UBS AG in Switzerland on his individual income tax returns from 2001 through 2003.



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Moldovan National Pleads Guilty to Forced Labor Trafficking

A Moldovan national pleaded guilty today in federal court in Kansas City, Mo., for his role in a forced labor trafficking scheme that victimized workers in 14 states.



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Indiana Man Pleads Guilty to Cross Burning

Bruce Mikulyuk, 50, of Mishawaka, Ind., pleaded guilty today to interfering with the housing rights of a white woman and an African American man by burning a cross in their yard and later returning with a knife and threatening the man if he did not leave.



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German National Pleads Guilty to Smuggling Coral from the Philippines

Gunther Wenzek, a German national, pleaded guilty today before District Judge Anna J. Brown, of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, to one count of smuggling coral into the United States at the port of Portland, Ore.



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Detroit-Area Physical Therapist Pleads Guilty in Medicare Fraud Scheme

Solomon Nathaniel of Sterling Heights, Mich., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Detroit to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the Medicare program.



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U.S. Army Sergeant Pleads Guilty to Bribery and Money Laundering Conspiracy Related to Department of Defense Contracts in Afghanistan

The Army Sergeant has agreed to pay $90,000 in restitution to the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) and to cooperate with the Department of Justice’s ongoing investigation.



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Ship Operator Pleads Guilty for Concealing Pollution from Oil Tanker

A Panamanian company that operated a 40,000-ton oil tanker ship pleaded guilty today for deliberately concealing pollution discharges from the ship directly into the sea.



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Bronx Return Preparer Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax Returns

Rosa N. Rivera, a resident of the Bronx, N.Y., pleaded guilty today to aiding and assisting in the presentation of a false individual income tax return for clients and to filing a false individual income tax return.



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Little Rock Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Sex Trafficking and Related Charges

Tommy Handy, aka “Tom Tom,” waived indictment and pleaded guilty in federal court in Little Rock, Ark., to a federal charge of sex trafficking of an underage female.



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