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Former Congressional Staffer Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Honest Services Fraud

A former congressional staffer pleaded guilty today to conspiring with others to commit honest services fraud. Ann Copland, 52, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard W. Roberts in the District of Columbia.



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Arizona Man Pleads Guilty to Receipt of Child Pornography

Charles Brown, 54, of Mesa, Ariz., pleaded guilty today to one count of receiving child pornography. During the plea hearing before U.S. District Judge Paul G. Rosenblatt, Brown admitted to receiving child pornography.



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Mississippi Lawyer Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Failure to File Tax Returns

Marshall E. Sanders, an attorney based in Vicksburg, Miss., was sentenced to 18 months in prison for failure to file tax returns by Magistrate Judge James C. Sumner. In addition, Judge Sumner ordered Sanders to pay restitution to the IRS of $1,025,453.



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Shipping Line Pays $1.4 Million for Environmental Crimes

Holy House Shipping AB, a Swedish corporation, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Camden, N.J., to pay a $1 million fine, a special assessment of $400,000 in community service payments and serve three years of probation for failing to maintain an accurate oil record book in an attempt to conceal illegal discharges of oil-contaminated waste directly into the ocean from one of its ships.



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U.S. Department of Justice Promotes International Network to Combat Intellectual Property Crime

Building upon the successes of earlier efforts, the Department today announced the opening in Bangkok of a regional conference of approximately 100 key law enforcement and industry officials from more than a dozen nations with the goal of strengthening international cooperation in fighting large-scale intellectual property crimes.



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Individual Indicted in Connection with Costa Rica-based Business Opportunity Fraud Ventures

A British citizen was charged in connection with the operation of a series of fraudulent business opportunities on March 10, 2009, by a Miami federal grand jury. Sirtaj Mathauda was indicted on charges that he and his co-conspirators purported to sell vending machine, beverage and greeting card business opportunities, including assistance in establishing, maintaining and operating such businesses. The charges form part of the government’s continued nationwide crackdown on business opportunity fraud.



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Attorney Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Securities Fraud

A securities attorney pleaded guilty today to defrauding investors in stock manipulation schemes involving 19 different publicly traded companies. David B. Stocker, 49, of Phoenix pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., for his participation in a stock manipulation conspiracy known as a “pump-and-dump” scheme.



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Former Alaska State Representative Pleads Guilty to Public Corruption Charges

Beverly L. Masek, a former elected member of the Alaska House of Representatives, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to commit bribery.  Masek pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Ralph Beistline in Anchorage to one count of conspiracy to commit bribery concerning programs receiving federal funds.



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San Mateo County, California, to Pay U.S. $6.8 Million to Resolve False Claims Allegations

San Mateo County, Calif., has agreed to pay the United States $6.8 million to resolve allegations that the San Mateo Medical Center (SMMC) submitted false claims to the United States in connection with payments from the Medicare and Medicaid programs. The government alleges that SMMC falsely inflated its bed count to Medicare in order to receive higher payments under Medicare’s Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) adjustment.



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Jury Convicts Former Social Worker of Defrauding the Department of Veterans Affairs and Obstructing Justice

A former Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) social work associate was convicted yesterday by a jury on four counts of honest services mail fraud, violating the criminal conflict of interest statute and making a false statement to agency officials.



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Director of Singapore Firm Pleads Guilty to Illegally Exporting Controlled Aircraft Components to Iran

Laura Wang-Woodford, a U.S. citizen who served as a director of Monarch Aviation Pte, Ltd. (“Monarch”), a Singapore company that imported and exported military and commercial aircraft components for more than 20 years, pled guilty today in federal court in Brooklyn to conspiring to violate the U.S. trade embargo by exporting controlled aircraft components to Iran.



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Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against Americraft Carton Inc., to Enforce the Employment Rights of Michigan Army National Guardsman

The Department today filed a lawsuit on behalf of David D. Sweatt, a Michigan Army National Guard member currently serving in Iraq, against Americraft Carton Inc. (Americraft), alleging violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).



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U.S. Border Patrol Agent Indicted on Federal Civil Rights Charge for Assault in Federal Detention Facility

A U.S. Border Patrol agent has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Tucson, Ariz., on federal civil rights charges related to an alleged assault on a detainee at a federal detention facility. The two-count indictment, returned on March 11, 2009, alleges that on May 10, 2006, Eduardo Moreno violated the civil rights of a federal detainee by assaulting and causing bodily injury to the individual while Moreno was on duty at the U.S. Border Patrol processing facility in Nogales, Ariz.



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Attorney Indicted for Conspiracy and Wire Fraud in Stock Registration and Manipulation Scheme

A securities attorney was charged in an indictment unsealed today with participating in a stock registration evasion scheme involving nine different publicly traded companies and with defrauding investors in a manipulation scheme related to three of the companies.



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Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against Indianapolis Law Firm to Enforce the Employment Rights of Indiana Army National Guardsman

The Department today filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis on behalf of Mathew B. Jeffries, an Indiana National Guard member, against the Indianapolis law firm of Mike Norris & Associates, alleging that the law firm refused to promptly reemploy Jeffries in violation of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).



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Justice Department Asks Court to Close Georgia Tax Preparation Firms Allegedly Involved in Fuel Credit Tax Scam

The United States has asked a federal court in Savannah, Ga., to permanently bar Ophelia Kelley of Vidalia, Ga., from preparing federal income tax returns for others. According to the government complaint, Kelley operates two return preparation firms in Vidalia – Kelley Tax Service, and City and Country Girl Tax Service.



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Iranian Man and His Company Charged in International Scheme to Supply Iran with Sensitive U.S. Technology

An Iranian citizen and his Tehran business have been charged with purchasing helicopter engines and advanced aerial cameras for fighter bombers from U.S. firms and illegally exporting them to Iran using companies in Malaysia, Ireland and the Netherlands. Among the alleged recipients of these U.S. goods was an Iranian military firm that has since been designated by the United States for being owned or controlled by entities involved in Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile program.



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Former Accounting Firm Vice Chairman/Board Member Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud Related to Tax Shelters

Adrian Dicker, a United Kingdom chartered accountant and former vice chairman and board member at a major international accounting firm, pleaded guilty today to conspiring with certain tax shelter promoters to defraud the United States in connection with tax shelter transactions involving clients of the accounting firm and the law firm Jenkens & Gilchrist (J&G).



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Jury Convicts Two Doctors and Two Medical Assistants in $5.3 Million Medicare Fraud Scam

A federal jury in Miami today convicted two physicians and two medical assistants in connection with a $5.3 million Medicare fraud scheme. After a two-week trial in federal court in Miami, a jury found David Rothman, M.D., 66; Keith Russell, M.D., 65; Eda Marietta Milanes, 43; and Jorge Luis Pacheco, 50; guilty on all charged counts, including conspiracy to commit health care fraud and multiple counts of health care fraud for submitting claims to Medicare for unnecessary medications.



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South Florida Stock Trader Pleads Guilty to Market Manipulation Scheme

A stock trader from Jupiter, Fla., pleaded guilty today to engaging in a market manipulation scheme involving several publicly traded companies. Earlier today, Paul M. Gozzo, 33, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Donald L. Graham in Miami to one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and one count of securities fraud.



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Justice Department Settles Allegations of Disability Discrimination Against Town of St. John, Indiana

The Department today announced a settlement resolving allegations that the town of St. John, Ind., violated the Fair Housing Act when it denied a petition for a zoning variance based on the disability of a prospective resident.



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Justice Department Settles Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Against Muskegon County, Michigan

The Department has entered into a consent decree today with Muskegon County, Mich., that, if approved by the court, will resolve the Department’s lawsuit against the county alleging that a former employee was subjected to sexual harassment that caused a hostile work environment, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.



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U.S. Sues Union Pacific R.R. for $37 Million for Allegedly Failing to Prevent Use of Rail Cars to Smuggle Narcotics Across Border

The government has filed two lawsuits against the Union Pacific Railroad Company for allegedly failing to prevent the use of its rail cars to smuggle large quantities of narcotics into the United States. The complaints, filed in San Diego and Houston, seek more than $37 million in monetary penalties. The government alleges the rail cars were brought across the border at the ports of entry at Calexico, Calif., and Brownsville, Texas.



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Former Memphis Police Officers Sentenced for Conspiracy to Violate Civil Rights

Two former Memphis police officers were sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Memphis for their roles in a conspiracy to rob drug dealers.



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Third Defendant Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Scheme Involving Bribes for Contracts at Kuwait Army Base

The sister of a U.S. Army officer has pleaded guilty for her participation in a money-laundering scheme related to bribes paid for contracts awarded in support of the Iraq war. Carolyn Blake, of Sunnyvale, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering conspiracy after accepting more than $3 million in bribe proceeds on behalf of her brother, Major John Cockerham.



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Justice Department Files Lawsuit Against Symphony Diagnostic Services Inc., to Enforce the Employment Rights of N.Y. Army National Guardsman

The Department today filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia on behalf of Frantz Julien, a New York Army National Guard member, against the Symphony Diagnostic Services Inc., doing business as MobilexUSA (Mobilex), alleging violations of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994 (USERRA).



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Former State Department Employee Sentenced for Illegally Accessing Confidential Passport Files

A former State Department employee was sentenced today to 12 months of probation and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service for illegally accessing more than 150 confidential passport application files. Dwayne F. Cross, 41, of Upper Marlboro, Md., was sentenced by U.S. Magistrate Judge John M. Facciola in Washington, D.C.



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MS-13 Member Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Involvement in Rico Conspiracy

A member of La Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, was sentenced today to 25 years in prison and five years of supervised release for his participation in a racketeering enterprise. Manuel Marquez, a/k/a “Morro,” was sentenced in Nashville, Tenn., by Chief Judge Todd J. Campbell of the Middle District of Tennessee.



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Two Doctors and Two Medical Assistants Plead Guilty in $10 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

Four Miami-area residents pleaded guilty today in connection with a $10 million Medicare fraud scheme involving HIV infusion clinics. Dr. Roberto Rodriguez, 54; Dr. Carlos Garrido, 69; Gonzalo Nodarse, 38; and Alexis Carrazana, 41; all pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Paul C. Huck to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.



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Veterans Affairs Official to Plead Guilty to Conspiracy and Wire Fraud

The Associate Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Consolidated Mail Outpatient Pharmacy in Hines, Ill., agreed to plead guilty to being part of a conspiracy to defraud the VA and the Small Business Administration (SBA). His wife and the temporary staffing company she founded agreed to plead guilty to participating in the same conspiracy.



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Irish Trading Firm and Its Officers Charged in Scheme to Supply Iran with Sensitive U.S. Technology

An Irish trading company and three of its officers have been charged with purchasing helicopter engines and other aircraft components from U.S. firms and illegally exporting them to Iran using companies in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates. Among the alleged recipients of these U.S. goods was an Iranian military firm that has since been designated by the United States for being owned or controlled by entities involved in Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile program.



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Sixth Aegis Company Principal Sentenced in Chicago to Ten Years in Prison for His Part in Firm’s $60 Million Tax Fraud Conspiracy

Edward B. Bartoli, a Clearwater, Fla., resident and former attorney, was sentenced to 10 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Charles R. Norgle of Chicago. Bartoli is the last of six defendants to be sentenced after they were convicted of various tax crimes in May 2008. Prior to his conviction, Bartoli was a founder of Aegis and its legal director.



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California Couple Plead Guilty in Alien Smuggling Scheme in Which Some Were Forced to Work at Elder Care Homes

The owner of two elder care homes in Long Beach, Calif., has pleaded guilty on March 23, 2009 to bringing undocumented aliens into the United States and forcing two of them to work at her businesses. Evelyn Pelayo, 53, a resident of Long Beach, pleaded guilty on March 23, 2009 to forced labor and unlawful conduct of holding passports to further forced labor.



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Connecticut Resident Pleads Guilty to Multi-Million Dollar Tax Fraud Conspiracy

A Newton, Conn., resident who was involved in operating three businesses in Brooklyn, N.Y., pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Mariusz Debowksi pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Manhattan to conspiracy to aid another in filing false tax returns.



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Justice Department Settles Lawsuit Against the City of Portsmouth, Virginia, Alleging Discrimination Against African Americans in the Hiring of Firefighters

The Department has entered into a consent decree with the City of Portsmouth, Va., that, if approved by the court, will resolve the Department’s complaint that the City of Portsmouth engaged in a pattern or practice of employment discrimination against African Americans in its hiring of entry-level firefighters, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII).



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Sikorsky Aircraft Pays $2.9 Million to Settle False Claims Act Allegations

Sikorsky Aircraft Company, a division of United Technologies Corporation, has agreed to pay the United States $2,941,000 to resolve fraud allegations in connection with its contract for the manufacture of Black Hawk helicopters for the Army. Sikorsky, located in Stratford, Conn., manufactures the Black Hawk or variations of the Black Hawk for the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines, as well as for other nations.



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Houston’s Methodist Hospital to Pay U.S. More Than $9 Million to Resolve Allegations of Overcharging Medicare

Methodist Hospital in Houston has agreed to pay the United States $9.99 million to settle allegations that it defrauded the federal Medicare program. The settlement resolves allegations that Methodist improperly increased charges to Medicare patients in order to obtain enhanced reimbursement from Medicare.



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Justice Department Announces Public Education Campaign Grants to Fight Immigration-Related Employment Discrimination

The Department is making grant funding available for public education programs concerning immigration-related employment discrimination. The Office of Special Counsel for Immigration Related Unfair Employment Practices (OSC), a section of the Department’s Civil Rights Division, announced the availability of funds for public education programs regarding employees’ rights and employers’ obligations under the anti-discrimination provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).



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Miami Doctor and Chemist Plead Guilty in HIV Infusion Fraud Scheme

Two Miami-area residents pleaded guilty today in connection with a $10 million Medicare fraud scheme involving HIV infusion clinics. Dr. Carmen Del Cueto, 65, and Alexis Dagnesses, 44, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud before U.S. District Judge Paul C. Huck. Both defendants admitted to working at Midway Medical Center Inc. (Midway), a Miami clinic that purported to specialize in the treatment of patients with HIV.



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Justice Department Announces Agreement to Protect Rights of Military and Overseas Voters in New York Special Congressional Election

The Department has reached agreement with New York officials to help ensure that military service members and other U.S. citizens living overseas have the opportunity to vote in the state’s March 31, 2009, special election in the 20th Congressional District.



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Hyannis, Mass., Man Sentenced to 84 Months for Receiving and Possessing Child Pornography

Harris Taubman, of Hyannis, Mass., was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Boston for receiving and possessing child pornography. Taubman, 48, was sentenced to 84 months in prison for three counts of receipt of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. He was indicted on those charges on Feb. 6, 2008, and pled guilty on Feb. 11, 2009.



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Jackson, Miss., Man Convicted of Receipt and Possession of Child Pornography

A Jackson, Miss., computer systems administrator was found guilty late Thursday of receiving and possessing images of child pornography on his home computer. Following a four-day jury trial in Natchez, Miss., Joseph McNealy was found guilty of three counts of receiving child pornography through the Internet and one count of possessing child pornography.



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Former National Century Financial Enterprises CEO Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison, Co-Owner Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison for Conspiracy, Fraud and Money Laundering

Two former National Century Financial Enterprises (NCFE) executives were sentenced today for their roles in a scheme to deceive investors about the financial health of NCFE. NCFE, formerly based in Dublin, Ohio, was one of the largest healthcare finance companies in the United States until it filed for bankruptcy in November 2002.



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Wyoming Highway Patrol Trooper Arrested for Violating Civil Rights by Kidnapping

Agents with the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Wyoming Department of Criminal Justice arrested Wyoming Highway Patrol Trooper Franklin Joseph Ryle late yesterday in Douglas, Wyo., on criminal civil rights charges.



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Hitachi Executive Indicted for His Role in LCD Price-Fixing Conspiracy

A federal grand jury in San Francisco returned an indictment today charging an executive at Hitachi Displays Ltd. with participating in a global conspiracy to fix the prices of Thin Film Transistor-Liquid Crystal Display (TFT-LCD) panels sold to Dell Inc.



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Statement of Attorney General Eric Holder Regarding United States V. Theodore F. Stevens

“In connection with the post-trial litigation in United States v. Theodore F. Stevens, the Department of Justice has conducted a review of the case, including an examination of the extent of the disclosures provided to the defendant. After careful review, I have concluded that certain information should have been provided to the defense for use at trial. In light of this conclusion, and in consideration of the totality of the circumstances of this particular case, I have determined that it is in the interest of justice to dismiss the indictment and not proceed with a new trial."



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City of Independence, Missouri, Agrees to Major Sewer System Upgrades

The city of Independence, Mo., has agreed to make major improvements to its sanitary sewer system, at an estimated cost of more than $35 million, to eliminate unauthorized overflows of untreated sewage into the Missouri River each year. Under the terms of the consent decree, lodged in Kansas City, Mo., Independence will also pay a civil penalty of $255,000 and will spend an additional $450,000 on supplemental environmental projects designed to enhance Missouri River watershed by improving storm water detention basins and stabilizing stream banks.



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One Current and Two Retired Baltimore City Police Department Officers Indicted on Civil Rights Charges

A current Baltimore City Police Department officer and two retired officers were charged in a six-count federal indictment unsealed today with civil rights and obstruction of justice violations stemming from an April 2004 incident during which officers allegedly assaulted a handcuffed and shackled juvenile with a baton and pool stick.



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Massachusetts Man Convicted on Child Pornography Charge

Rudy Frabizio, 46, of Acton, Mass., was convicted today of possession of child pornography. Frabizio was found guilty after a seven-day jury trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts in Boston. Frabizio may face up to five years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 5, 2009.



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Former Baton Rouge, Louisiana Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights Violation

Nathan Davis, a former police officer with the Baton Rouge Police Department in Baton Rouge, La., pleaded guilty today to a felony civil rights violation for use of excessive force. At today’s court hearing, defendant Davis admitted that he intentionally used excessive force in March 2007 against a man who had been arrested, handcuffed and taken to a police department holding center.



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