Former New York State Supreme Court Justice Thomas J. Spargo was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Gary Sharpe in Albany, N.Y. to 27 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release for attempted extortion and bribery, Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge John F. Pikus of the FBI’s Albany office announced.

“This important settlement resolves lengthy litigation on very favorable terms,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.

Donald Mathias of Davie, Fla., pleaded guilty today to engaging in sex tourism in the Philippines.

This is the fourth Indiana man in two months to be sentenced to prison time for burning a cross.

A settlement estimated worth more than $30 million will ensure that cleanup of the Sutton Brook Disposal Area Superfund Site in Tewksbury, Mass., will move forward, the Justice Department and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection announced today.

“The resolution of this matter yielded a substantial recovery for taxpayers, and it underscores our commitment to ensure that services reimbursable by federal health care programs are based on the best interests of patients rather than the personal financial interests of referring physicians,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Department’s Civil Division.

Visiting Physicians Association, which is based in Farmington Hills, Mich., will pay the United States and the state of Michigan $9.5 million to settle allegations that the association violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to Medicare, TRICARE and the Michigan Medicaid program.

“Gary is a great asset to the Department, and I am pleased he has agreed to take on this responsibility,” Attorney General Eric Holder said.

Chevron Corporation, Texaco, Unocal Incorporated and their affiliates (the Chevron companies) have agreed to pay the United States $45,569,584.74, to resolve claims that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly underpaying royalties owed on natural gas produced from federal and Indian leases.

The Department filed a brief as a friend of the court in Marlo M., et al. v. Cansler, et al., a community integration case in federal court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.

Aristotle R. Matsa, an attorney in Columbus, Ohio, was charged with tax offenses, obstruction of justice and additional charges in a 20-count indictment unsealed today.

A 23-year-old Nigerian man was charged in a federal criminal complaint today with attempting to destroy a Northwest Airlines aircraft on its final approach to Detroit Metropolitan Airport on Christmas Day, and with placing a destructive device on the aircraft.

“As this case demonstrates, we are committed to vigorously pursuing those who defraud Medicare.”

“The Department of Justice will be vigilant in pursuing cases against medical device companies that break the law and defraud taxpayers,” said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division.

UTStarcom Inc. (UTSI) has entered into an agreement with the Department of Justice, agreeing to pay a $1.5 million fine for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act by providing travel and other things of value to foreign officials, specifically employees at state-owned telecommunications firms in the People’s Republic of China.

Wheaton Community Hospital, the City of Wheaton, Minn. and Dr. Stanley Gallagher (collectively WCH) have agreed to pay $846,461 to settle allegations that their hospital admission practices violated the False Claims Act.

Johnny Pires, 24, was sentenced today to five years in prison and five years of supervised release following his prison term for attempting to receive and possessing child pornography. Pires was also ordered to register as a sex offender.

The United States this week filed five civil injunction lawsuits in Detroit, Cincinnati and Chicago against several individuals and their tax preparation services.

A former Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) official was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Columbus, Ga., to three years in prison for his role in a bribery conspiracy involving a multi-million dollar telecommunications contract, and for not reporting the bribes he accepted on his income tax returns.

Justin Cannon, 27, of Corpus Christi, Texas, and Christopher Drotleff, 29, of Virginia Beach, Va., have been charged with crimes including second-degree murder, attempted murder and firearms offenses while working as contractors for the U.S. Department of Defense in Afghanistan. Cannon and Drotleff were charged under the Military Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Act (MEJA).

The Department filed a lawsuit against the state of New Jersey and the New Jersey Civil Service Commission alleging a pattern or practice of employment discrimination against African-Americans and Hispanics, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

The Department’s Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York have entered into an agreement with New York City to correct conditions of confinement at the Kings County Hospital Center’s (KCHC) psychiatric emergency room and psychiatric in-patient units located in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Michael Sayklay, the former vice president of Economy Cash & Carry Inc., a Texas-based grocery wholesaler, pleaded guilty today in federal court in El Paso, Texas, to a criminal violation of the Plant Protection Act.

"We cannot ignore the fact that protecting our economy is an essential component of our larger security goals," said Attorney General Holder.

A Florida man has been sentenced to 90 months in prison for making e-mail and telephone threats, including threats intended to cause a candidate for statewide office in Florida to drop out of an election.

“This year cannot just be an anniversary – it must be a call to action.  The Department is marking this year with our renewed dedication and a recommitment to ending violence against women.”

The new directive is part of a larger Justice Department initiative to create better communication and coordination to fight crime and promote justice in Indian Country.

The department filed a brief as a friend of the court in Sacred Heart Rehabilitation Center Inc. v. Richmond Township and Richmond Township Planning Commission, a civil rights case regarding the expansion of an addictive disorders treatment facility in Macomb County, Mich.

"We want to use this year not merely to commemorate an anniversary, but to recommit ourselves to ending violence against women. Our government and this Department have a responsibility to speak out and act on issues of violence against women."

Howard William Ledford of Hayesville, N.C., was sentenced today in federal court in the Western District of North Carolina to serve one year in prison for illegally selling and transporting wild American ginseng into Georgia.

Freddy Deoliveira, who held various supervisory positions at the New York Presbyterian Hospital, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.

John D. Stacey of Mesa, Ariz., was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Neil V. Wake to 77 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.5 million dollars in restitution on Jan. 7, 2010.

Clement Calhoun, a member of the Cherokee Nation in North Carolina, was sentenced in federal court in the Western District of North Carolina, to six months in prison for illegally transporting and selling 51 bear gall bladders.

The national coordinator is charged with formulating and implementing a national strategy to combat child exploitation, and with submitting the strategy and relevant reports to Congress.

The Department has sued George K. Pragovich of Clarksville, Tenn., to stop him from promoting an alleged nationwide scheme involving hundreds of frivolous lawsuits filed against the United States.

Bradley C. Brennecke, a resident of Pleasant Plain, Ohio, and Bruce A. Mrusek, a resident of Maineville, Ohio, pleaded guilty late Tuesday to conspiracy and tax evasion charges before District Court Judge Michael R. Barrett in Cincinnati.

Anthony Mowl, the former assistant vice president of business development for Viable Communications Inc. (Viable), and Donald Tropp, the former human resources manager for Viable, pleaded guilty today to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Video Relay Service (VRS) program of more than $2.5 million, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division.

The United States has asked a federal court in Dublin, Ga., to permanently bar James J. King from preparing federal income tax returns for others.

Defendants Alec Sou and Mike Sou, co-owners of Aloun Farm, pleaded guilty on Jan.13, 2010, in federal district court in Honolulu, to conspiring to commit forced labor.

Paul Schlesselman pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, one count of threatening to kill and inflict bodily harm upon a presidential candidate, and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

"We must be vigilant in our efforts to safeguard and strengthen the American economy. Our efforts to fight economic crime are a vital component of our broader strategy - a strategy that seeks to foster confidence in our financial system, integrity in our markets, and prosperity for the American people."

The position was established as part of the Department’s ongoing efforts, initiated last year at the direction of the Attorney General, to review and improve its criminal discovery and case management policies and procedures.

Manual Deluna has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud in connection with his role in Memorial Medical Supply, a Houston durable medical equipment company.

“Each year, Martin Luther King Day provides an opportunity for all Americans to rededicate ourselves to Dr. King’s dream of racial, social, and economic justice," said Attorney General Holder.

As a part of the tax conspiracy, Ronald Boyarsky assisted in paying approximately $2.6 million in commissions earned by a printing services broker to third parties, so that the broker and his companies could avoid paying taxes on the income they earned.

The Department has reached a settlement in its lawsuit against the city of Milwaukee on behalf of Michael Crivello, a detective in the Milwaukee Police Department, alleging the city violated the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).

The United States alleged that FORBA was liable for causing the submission of claims for reimbursement for a wide range of dental services provided to low-income children that were either medically unnecessary or performed in a manner that failed to meet professionally-recognized standards of care.

General Re has admitted that its most senior management engaged in a scheme to falsely inflate AIG’s reported loss reserves, a key indicator of financial health to insurance industry analysts and investors.

The chief executive officer of Sterling Seafood Corporation located in Cresskill, N.J., pleaded guilty to importing falsely labeled fish from Vietnam and evading over $60 million in federal tariffs, as well as selling over $500,000 in similarly misbranded fish purchased from another importer in the United States.

Pacific Pipeline Systems LLP, a Long Beach, Calif.-based oil transport company, has agreed to pay a $1.3 million civil penalty and discontinue the use of a section of pipeline through an unstable section of mountains to resolve a Clean Water Act violation.