The Justice Department today announced an agreement with Fayette County, Pa., to improve access to all aspects of civic life for persons with disabilities. The agreement was reached under the Department’s Project Civic Access initiative, which aims to bring state and local governments into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The United States has filed a lawsuit to bar a married couple’s alleged nationwide tax fraud scheme involving so-called asset protection.

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.

Aggregate Industries - Northeast Region Inc., will pay a $2.75 million civil penalty and implement a regional evaluation and compliance program to resolve numerous violations of the Clean Water Act at 23 facilities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP) has agreed to settle alleged violations of the Clean Water Act in Nevada by restoring 122 acres of mountain-desert streams and wetlands, implementing storm water controls at its construction sites, and paying a civil penalty.

Two dual Afghan/U.S. citizens today pleaded guilty for their roles in a scheme to offer $1 million in bribes to a U.S. Army contracting official in Afghanistan.

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.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) signed two Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009, to foster increased communication between participating agencies at the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Fusion Center and the International Organized Crime Intelligence and Operations Center (IOC-2).

The Justice Department today announced an agreement with the city of Port St. Lucie, Fla., to improve access to all aspects of civic life for persons with disabilities. The agreement was reached under the Department’s Project Civic Access initiative to bring state and local governments into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Ohio Edison Company, a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp., has agreed in a consent decree to repower one of its coal-fired power plants using primarily renewable biomass fuels.

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.

Charles Brown, 54, of Mesa, Ariz., was sentenced today to five years in prison and lifetime supervised release following his prison term for receiving child pornography.

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.

Fleet Management Ltd., a Hong Kong-based ship management firm, pleaded guilty today to a criminal violation of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 for its role in negligently causing the discharge of more than 50,000 gallons of fuel oil into San Francisco Bay from the Cosco Busan when the vessel struck the San Francisco Bay Bridge in dense fog on Nov. 7, 2007.

The Boeing Company will pay the United States $25 million to resolve allegations that the company performed defective work on the entire KC-10 Extender fleet. The KC-10 Extender is a mainstay of the Air Force’s aerial refueling fleet in the Iraq and Afghanistan war theaters.

Dynamics Research Corporation (DRC), a defense contractor based in Andover, Mass., has agreed to pay the United States $15 million plus interest to settle allegations that two of its former executives engaged in a fraudulent kickback scheme in connection with two technical services contracts with the Air Force.

A federal jury in San Juan, Puerto Rico, found four San Juan Municipal Police Officers guilty today of felony federal civil rights charges related to the fatal beating of Jose Antonio Rivera Robles.

Two former employees of Edward H. Okun, who was sentenced to 100 years in prison on Aug. 4, 2009, after a three-week jury trial, were sentenced today before U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne for their roles in a scheme to defraud and obtain approximately $126 million in client funds held by The 1031 Tax Group LLP (1031TG).

A pipeline company and two of its former operating firms will jointly pay a civil penalty of $3.65 million to resolve violations of the Clean Water Act resulting from anhydrous ammonia spills in Nebraska and Kansas, the Justice Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today. The spills which occurred in 2004 resulted in significant fish kills in surrounding waterways.

The North Eastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council (NEMLEC) will pay the United States $200,000 to settle allegations that it made false claims related to the use of Justice Department grant funds. Based in Boston, NEMLEC is a non-profit corporation and a law enforcement council. It is comprised of a consortium of 47 police departments in Middlesex and Essex Counties, as well as two county sheriff’s departments.

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.

Craig Shaber, an attorney from San Diego was arraigned today before Magistrate Judge Anthony J. Battaglia in that city on charges of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and tax evasion for years 2000 to 2002. On Aug. 14, 2009, Steven Wright, an accountant, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jan M. Adler to one count of tax evasion for the 2000 tax year.

Five members of an extended family were sentenced to federal prison late yesterday, all receiving lengthy sentences for their roles in an international sex trafficking ring that lured young Guatemalan women and girls to the Los Angeles area and forced them into prostitution.

Cooper Land Development, Inc., a luxury home development company headquartered in Rogers, Ark., has agreed to pay a civil penalty and implement a storm water compliance program at its construction sites to settle allegations that it violated the Clean Water Act.

A former member of the U.S. armed services was sentenced today to 28 months in prison for his role in a widespread bribery and extortion conspiracy that operated from January 2002 through March 2004.

Hansruedi Schumacher and Matthias Rickenbach, both of Switzerland, were indicted today for conspiring to defraud the United States. According to the indictment, Schumacher worked as an executive manager at Neue Zuercher Bank (NZB), a Swiss private bank located in Zurich, Switzerland. Rickenbach worked as a Swiss attorney who provided legal advice and services to U.S. clients.

Two manufacturing companies, in separate settlements, have agreed to pay civil penalties and take corrective measures to settle Clean Air Act violations resulting from explosions at two plants in 2002 and 2003 in Louisville, Ky., and Pascagoula, Miss.

Tyson Fresh Meats, Inc., the world’s largest supplier of premium beef and pork, has agreed to pay a $2,026,500 civil penalty to settle allegations that it violated terms of a 2002 consent decree and a federally-issued pollution discharge permit at its meat processing facility in Dakota City, Neb.

“We are extremely disappointed with the Scottish Executive's decision to release Abdel Basset Mohamed al-Megrahi. The interests of justice have not been served by this decision. There is simply no justification for releasing this convicted terrorist whose actions took the lives of 270 individuals, including 189 Americans. Megrahi did not show and has not shown compassion for innocent human life, and as we communicated to the Scottish authorities and the UK government, it continues to be our position that he should have been required to serve the entire sentence handed down for his crimes. Our deepest sympathies go out to the families of those whose loved ones were killed in 1988 due to Megrahi's vicious actions.”

Former UBS banker, Bradley Birkenfeld of Weymouth, Mass., has been sentenced to 40 months incarceration by Judge William J. Zloch in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. On June 19, 2008, Birkenfeld pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States.

Raschad L. “Sean” Lewis, a former fuel section employee of Kellogg Brown and Root Inc. (KBR) assigned to Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan, was sentenced today to 84 months in prison for his role in a bribery and a fuel diversion scheme. U.S. District Court Judge Leonie M. Brinkema also ordered Lewis to pay $891,000 in restitution and serve three years of supervised release.

Donald Platten of Boca Raton, Fla., was convicted today of conspiracy, securities fraud and tax charges following a jury trial before Judge Donald Middlebrooks in West Palm Beach, Fla. In December 2008, Platten was indicted on 17 charges, including conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and impeding the internal revenue laws.

A former Congressional staffer and chief of staff in two federal agencies was indicted today by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia on public corruption charges, the Justice Department announced. The five-count indictment charges Horace M. Cooper, 44, of Lorton, Va., with one count of conspiracy, one count of fraudulent concealment, two counts of false statements, and one count of obstruction of an official proceeding. U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan Kay today issued a criminal summons directing Cooper to make an initial appearance in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2009, at 1:45 p.m.

Attorney General Eric Holder has appointed U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota B. Todd Jones to chair the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee (AGAC) of U.S. Attorneys.

The Department of Justice today announced that Mohammed Jawad, a native of Afghanistan, has been transferred from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to Afghanistan.

Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo, Iowa has agreed to pay the United States $4.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act. This settlement resolves allegations that Covenant submitted false claims to Medicare by having financial relationships with five physicians that violated the Stark Law.

Japanese electronics manufacturer Epson Imaging Devices Corporation (Epson) agreed to plead guilty and pay a $26 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices in the sale of Thin Film Transistor-Liquid Crystal Display panels (TFT-LCD) sold to Motorola Inc.

Lee William Dubois, a former Department of Defense contractor, was sentenced today to three years in prison for his participation in a scheme to steal fuel worth approximately $39.6 million from the U.S. Army in Iraq.

Four men and one woman have been arrested on charges of conspiracy and sex trafficking of children, as well as forcing and coercing adults to engage in commercial sex acts.

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.

A federal grand jury in Denver has charged Donald Hertz with transmitting a threat in interstate commerce and with violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act for allegedly threatening an employee of a Colorado abortion clinic.

Eugene Morris, a former correctional officer with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, was sentenced today in federal court in Houston for providing a false statement related to a federal civil rights investigation. Morris was sentenced to two years in prison and two years of supervised release.

A former sand and gravel subcontractor was sentenced today to serve five years in prison and to pay a $5,000 criminal fine by U.S. District Judge Carl J. Barbier after being convicted by a federal jury of conspiracy and bribery in connection with a $16 million hurricane protection project for the reconstruction a New Orleans levee.

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.

"Senator Kennedy’s accomplished life came to a close last night but in the struggle to provide justice and equality for all Americans we will work every day to ensure that his cause endures and that his dreams for a better America never die."

Rodney K. Justin, a medical doctor from Woodleaf, N.C., was convicted yesterday of obstructing the internal revenue laws and of failing to file tax returns for several years. After trial in Winston-Salem, N.C., a federal jury convicted Justin of four felony counts of corruptly obstructing the administration of the internal revenue laws by sending fake financial instruments called “Bills of Exchange” to the Secretary of the Treasury in Washington, D.C., in purported payment of over $350,000 in taxes.

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.

Former New York State Supreme Court Justice Thomas J. Spargo was convicted today by a federal jury in Albany, N.Y., of attempted extortion and soliciting a bribe.

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.

Madhatta Haipe, a citizen of the Philippines, has been extradited from the Philippines to face trial in the District of Columbia for various crimes relating to the hostage taking of U.S. and Philippine citizens in 1995.