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Canadian Citizen Pleads Guilty in Connection with Costa Rica-Based Business Opportunity Fraud Ventures

Kerry Michael Deevy pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami to 13 counts of an indictment pending against him, including one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, three counts of mail fraud, and nine counts of wire fraud.



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Arizona Businessmen and California Attorney Convicted for Hiding Millions in Secret Foreign Bank Accounts at UBS AG and Pictet & Cie

A jury convicted Stephen M. Kerr and Michael Quiel yesterday on federal tax charges stemming from their failure to disclose secret offshore bank accounts in Switzerland.



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California Businesswoman Agrees to Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Conceal Israeli Bank Accounts

Guity Kashfi of Los Angeles, was charged today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California with conspiracy to defraud the United States.



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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the White House Forum on Increasing Access to Justice

"Five decades have passed since Dr. King laid down those immortal words. Yet, as we come together today, his work remains our common pursuit," said Attorney General Holder.




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Suspect in Boston Marathon Attack Charged with Using a Weapon of Mass Destruction

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev, 19, a U.S. citizen and resident of Cambridge, Mass., has been charged with using a weapon of mass destruction against persons and property at the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013, resulting in the death of three people and injuries to more than 200 people.



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Clean Air Act Settlement with Wisconsin Utilities to Reduce Emissions by More Than 50,000 Tons Annually

The Department of Justice, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Wisconsin announced a Clean Air Act (CAA) settlement with Wisconsin Power and Light Company (WPL) that will significantly reduce air pollution from three coal-fired power plants located near Portage, Sheboygan, and Cassville, Wis.



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Justice Department Returned $1.5 Billion to Victims of Crime since January 2012

As the United States concludes its recognition of National Crime Victims’ Rights Week, Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman announced that the Department of Justice’s Asset Forfeiture Program has returned more than $1.5 billion in forfeited assets to more than 400,000 crime victims since January 2012.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Alabama Man Indicted for Multi-Million Dollar Stolen Identity Refund Fraud Scheme Using Prisoner Identities

A federal grand jury in Montgomery, Ala., returned an indictment charging Harvey James for using stolen identities to file false tax returns.



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New York Businessman Pleads Guilty to Tax Crimes

Antonio Morales, a resident of Brooklyn, N.Y., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York to aiding in the preparation of a false federal tax return.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Departments of Justice and Housing and Urban Development Release New Guidance on “Design and Construction” Requirements Under the Fair Housing Act

New guidance released today by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Justice reinforces the Fair Housing Act requirement that multifamily housing be designed and constructed so as to be accessible to persons with disabilities.



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Justice Department Announces Fair Housing Settlement with Oregon Developer

The Justice Department announced today that Oregon developer David Montagne and others affiliated with him have agreed to pay $80,000 and remove accessibility barriers at Gateway Village, a 275 unit apartment complex in Salem, Oregon, to settle a lawsuit alleging that they had violated the Fair Housing Act by building the complex with steps and other features that made it inaccessible to persons with disabilities.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Deputy Chief of Staff for the Criminal Division Daniel Suleiman Delivers Remarks to the Minnesota State Bar Association’s 37th Annual International Business Law Institute

It is Justice Department policy that no FCPA prosecution can be brought without authorization from the Criminal Division, which distinguishes FCPA prosecutions from most other kinds of federal criminal cases.




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St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana Agrees to $2.5 Million Settlement to Resolve Housing Discrimination Lawsuits

The Justice Department announced today that St. Bernard Parish, La., has agreed to a settlement valued at more than $2.5 million to resolve separate lawsuits by the United States and private plaintiffs alleging that the parish sought to restrict rental housing to African Americans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.



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Idaho Businessman Sentenced to Prison for Tax Evasion

Michael George Fitzpatrick, 51, of Hope, Idaho, was sentenced to 42 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Larry A. Burns.



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Justice Department Recognizes Nine Individuals for Child Protection Efforts at Missing Children’s Day Ceremony

The Justice Department today paid tribute to nine individuals for their extraordinary efforts to recover missing children, rescue children from abuse and prosecute sexual predators during its annual commemoration of National Missing Children’s Day.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Justice Programs Mary Lou Leary Speaks at the National Missing Children's Day Ceremony

I want to take this opportunity not only to congratulate our honorees, but to thank all of you – everyone here – for your commitment to finding missing, abducted, and exploited children.




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Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West Speaks at the National Missing Children’s Day Ceremony

Our commitment to children – and to finding missing children – is stronger than ever.




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Justice Department Reaches Fair Housing Settlement with Design Professionals in Disability Lawsuit

The Justice Department today announced a settlement with the architects and civil engineers involved in the design and construction of multifamily housing complexes located in Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee.



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Michigan Businessman Pleads Guilty to Bank Fraud and Obstructing the Internal Revenue Service

Mosii Mays Blackwell, of Detroit, Mich., pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of Michigan to obstructing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and bank fraud, the Justice Department and the IRS announced today.



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Eighth Individual Sentenced in Connection with Costa Rica-Based Business Opportunity Fraud Ventures

Sean Rosales, a dual United States and Costa Rican citizen, was sentenced today in connection with a series of business opportunity fraud ventures based in Costa Rica, the Justice Department and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service announced today.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Manssor Arbabsiar Sentenced in New York City Federal Court to 25 Years in Prison for Conspiring with Iranian Military Officials to Assassinate the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States

Manssor Arbabsiar, aka “Mansour Arbabsiar,” was sentenced today in New York City federal court to 25 years in prison for participating in a plot to murder the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the U.S. while the Ambassador was in the U.S..



  • OPA Press Releases

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Two Virginia Businessmen Sentenced for Illegally Reimbursing Campaign Contributions

William P. Danielczyk Jr. was sentenced today to 28 months in prison and ordered to pay a $50,000 fine for illegally reimbursing $186,600 in contributions to the Senate and Presidential campaign committees of a candidate for federal office and then obstructing the subsequent law enforcement investigation.



  • OPA Press Releases

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North Carolina Businessman Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud

William Robert Hupman Jr., pleaded guilty today to corruptly endeavoring to obstruct or impede the due administration of the internal revenue laws.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Owner of Window Installation Business Admits Tax Evasion in New Jersey

The owner of a window installation company located in Mt.Laurel, N.J. admitted today he converted to cash millions of dollars in the company’s gross receipts and used the money to pay his workers without withholding employment taxes announced.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Louisiana Businessman Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements to the Federal Election Commission

The president of a Louisiana towing company pleaded guilty today to using his personal and business accounts to fund campaign contribution checks in the names of others in support of two candidates for the U.S. Senate.



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Owner of Michigan Inventory Counting Businesss Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud

David P. Rowley, a resident of Jackson, Michigan, pleaded guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge Denise Page Hood to filing a false individual income tax return.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Security Contractor Executives Sentenced for Illegally Obtaining More Than $31 Million Intended for Disadvantaged Small Businesses

Two executives at a Virginia-based security contracting firm were sentenced in the Eastern District of Virginia for their roles in using a front company to obtain more than $31 million intended for disadvantaged small businesses as part of the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Section 8(a) program. This program allows qualified small businesses to receive sole-source and competitive-bid contracts set aside for minority-owned and disadvantaged small businesses.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Security Contractor CEO Sentenced for Masterminding $31 Million Disadvantaged Small Business Fraud Scheme

The former chief executive officer of a Virginia-based security contracting firm was sentenced in the Eastern District of Virginia to 72 months in prison for creating a front company to obtain more than $31 million intended for disadvantaged small businesses and for bribing the former regional director for the National Capital Region of the Federal Protective Service (FPS) as part of the scheme.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Executive at Florida-Based Lender Processing Services Inc. Sentenced to Five Years in Prison for Role in Mortgage-Related Document Fraud Scheme

A former executive of Lender Processing Services Inc. (LPS) – a publicly traded company based in Jacksonville, Fla. – was sentenced today to serve five years in prison for her participation in a six-year scheme to prepare and file more than 1 million fraudulently signed and notarized mortgage-related documents with property recorders’ offices throughout the United States.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Utah Man Previously Charged with Filing False Claims for Tax Refunds Indicted for Additional Charge of Passing a Fictitious Financial Instrument

A federal grand jury in Salt Lake City today returned a superseding indictment charging a resident of Heber City, Utah, with 18 counts of presenting false, fictitious and fraudulent claims to the United States and one count of passing a fictitious obligation.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Sinovel Corporation and Three Individuals Charged in Wisconsin with Theft of Amsc Trade Secrets

A manufacturer and exporter of wind turbines based in the People’s Republic of China, two employees of that manufacturer and a former employee of a subsidiary of AMSC, a United States-based company formerly known as American Superconductor Inc., were charged today with stealing trade secrets from AMSC causing an alleged loss of more than $800 million to the company.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Security Contractor Sentenced to Four Years in Prison for Role as Figurehead Owner in $31 Million Small Business Fraud Scheme

The chief executive officer of a Virginia-based security contracting firm was sentenced today to serve four years in prison for serving as a figurehead owner of a front company created to obtain more than $31 million intended for disadvantaged small businesses through the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Section 8(a) program, which allows qualified small businesses to receive sole-source and competitive-bid contracts set aside for minority-owned and disadvantaged small businesses.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Owner of Landscaping Business in Freeport, N.Y. Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion

The Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Lawrence Garafola, a resident of Poway, Calif., pleaded guilty to tax evasion.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Maryland Businessman Pleads Guilty to Concealing Foreign Bank Account at Israel-based Bank on His Tax Return

The Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) announced that Alexei Iazlovsky of Potomac, Md., pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to filing a false tax return for tax year 2008.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Files Fair Housing Lawsuit Against Owners and Managers of Rental Homes in Washington State for Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities

The Justice Department today filed a lawsuit against the owners and managers of rental homes in and near Kelso and Longview, Wash., for violating the Fair Housing Act by discriminating against persons with disabilities.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Iraqi Company Business Manager Pleads Guilty in Texas to Illegal Gratuities Scheme

A business manager for an Iraqi company pleaded guilty today to giving thousands of dollars in illegal gratuities to a U.S. pay agent from contractors while the business manager was in Iraq, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson of the Southern District of Texas.



  • OPA Press Releases

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North Carolina Used Oil Recycling Business and Owner Plead Guilty to Unlawful Handling of PCB-Contaminated Used Oil and Other Crimes

Benjamin Franklin Pass, 60, and P&s Environment and Natural Resources Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina. The defendants admitted to, among other things, the unlawful handling of a toxic substance that resulted in widespread contamination.



  • OPA Press Releases

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California Businessman Pleads Guilty to Concealing Foreign Bank Account at Israeli Bank on His Tax Return

Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division Kathryn Keneally and U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag for the Northern District of California announced that Moshe Handelsman of Saratoga, Calif., pleaded guilty today to filing a false tax return for tax year 2007.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Brooklyn Owner of Sportswear Distribution Business Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion

The Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Harry Neuhoff, a resident of Brooklyn, N.Y., has pleaded guilty to tax evasion.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Owner of Employee Leasing Company Sentenced to Federal Prison for Failing to Pay Payroll Taxes to the IRS

The Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Richard R. Whatley, a former owner of Alliance Staffing Management Inc. (ASM), was sentenced to 51 months in prison today for willfully failing to account for and pay over employment taxes.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Federal Courts Authorize Service of John Doe Summonses Seeking Identities of Persons Using Payment Cards in Norway

The Justice Department announced that federal courts in Minnesota, Texas, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Virginia and California have entered orders over the past week authorizing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to serve John Doe summonses on certain U.S. banks and financial institutions, seeking information about persons who have used specific credit or debit cards in Norway.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Texas Businessman Agrees to Settle False Claims Allegations Involving the E-Rate Program

Larry Lehmann of Giddings, Texas has agreed to pay $400,000 to settle allegations that he violated the False Claims Act in connection with the Federal Communications Commission’s E-rate Program, the Department of Justice announced today. The E-rate Program, created by Congress in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, subsidizes eligible equipment and services to make Internet access and internal networking more affordable for public schools and libraries.



  • OPA Press Releases

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California Businessman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Defraud the Internal Revenue Service

The Justice Department announced today that Gary Mach, a Palm Desert, Calif. resident who operated Crystal Springs Pool Service (CSPS), pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).



  • OPA Press Releases

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Ninth Individual Sentenced in Connection with Costa Rica-based Business Opportunity Ventures That Defrauded Americans

Michael Kerry Deevy, a Canadian citizen, was sentenced today in connection with a series of business opportunity fraud ventures based in Costa Rica, the Justice Department and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service announced. Beginning in 2006, Deevy and his co-conspirators in Costa Rica are alleged to have fraudulently induced purchasers in the U.S. to buy business opportunities from companies known as Cards-R-Us Inc., Premier Cards Inc. and Nation West. The business opportunities cost purchasers thousands of dollars each, with most paying at least $10,000. Today’s sentencing forms part of the government’s continued nationwide crackdown on business opportunity fraud.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Homeowners Association and Property Management Company in Fair Housing Lawsuit Involving Occupancy Limits

The Justice Department announced today that the Townhomes of Kings Lake HOA Inc. (HOA) and Vanguard Management Group Inc. have agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging violations of the Fair Housing Act (FHA).



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Settles Fair Housing Lawsuit with Multi/Tech Engineering Services Inc.

The Justice Department announced today that Multi/Tech Engineering Services Inc., an engineering firm based in Salem, Ore., has agreed to pay more than $60,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that it had violated the Fair Housing Act by designing Gateway Village Apartments with steps and other features that made it inaccessible to people with disabilities.



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Justice Department Obtains $22,000 Settlement in Housing Discrimination Lawsuit Against Mt. Washington, KY., Landlord

The Justice Department announced today that Jerry L. Wilson, a Mt. Washington, Ky., landlord has agreed to pay $22,000 to resolve allegations that he violated the Fair Housing Act by discriminating against African-American apartment seekers and making statements indicating a preference for families without children for certain available apartments.



  • OPA Press Releases

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California Businessman Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Conceal Israeli Bank Accounts

Aaron Cohen of Encino, Calif., pleaded guilty today in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to conspiracy to defraud the United States, the Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) announced.



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Former South Pittsburg, Tenn., Mayor and Co-conspirator Plead Guilty to Conducting Illegal Gambling Business

A former mayor of South Pittsburg, Tenn., and a co-conspirator pleaded guilty today in Chattanooga, Tenn., to conducting an illegal gambling business, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge Kenneth Moore of the FBI’s Knoxville, Tenn., Field Office.



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Massachusetts Businessman Indicted for Tax Crimes

The Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that Richard L. Furnelli, formerly of Holyoke and South Hadley, Mass., was indicted today in Springfield, Mass.



  • OPA Press Releases