Daniel B. Birkbeck, 46, of North Stonington, Conn., was charged today in federal court with trafficking in and falsifying records for illegally harvested Atlantic Striped Bass.

"Effective, accountable policing is critical for any healthy community, and we are here today because we all share the goal of ensuring that the Portland Police Bureau is the best law enforcement agency that it can be."

The Justice Department has reached an agreement with the city of Bedford, Va., that, if approved by the court, will allow for the city’s bailout from its status as a “covered jurisdiction” under the special provisions of Voting Rights Act, and thereby exempt the city from the preclearance requirements of Section 5 of the act.

A Romanian national pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia for leading a money laundering network for a transnational criminal group based in Eastern Europe.

The U.S. subsidiary of Belgian pharmaceutical manufacturer UCB SA. pleaded guilty today to the off-label promotion of its epilepsy drug Keppra and will pay more than $34 million to resolve criminal and civil liability arising out of its illegal conduct.

Charles Hollie, a resident of Tyler, Texas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael H. Schneider to 24 months in prison for filing false tax returns.

An owner of an Illinois-based technology company was sentenced today to serve one year and a day in prison for his participation in a conspiracy to defraud the federal E-Rate program.

A Pakistani native who operated a Chicago-based immigration business was convicted today of participating in conspiracy involving a terrorism plot against a Danish newspaper and providing material support to a terrorist organization based in Pakistan.

"At the Department of Justice, we are investing in more effective enforcement strategies, but we are also investing in communities across the country in proven strategies for preventing crime, in particular for reaching vulnerable young people before they commit crimes or when they begin going down the wrong path, and we are also investing in providing a transition for individuals coming out of prison, what we call reentry, because if we can reduce the recidivism rate, we can also reduce crime."

"Today's summit proves our unwavering commitment to preventing terrorists and other criminals from exploiting the Internet for planning, financing, or executing attacks; to engaging with an expanded network of partners across government and the private sector; and to strengthening our efforts to establish the rule of law in cyberspace."

The Department of Justice, through our United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Civil Division’s Office of Consumer Protection Litigation, is investigating and prosecuting dozens of cases against these so-called “notarios,” said Assistant Attorney General West.

A Detroit grand jury has returned a superseding indictment charging Karl Herrington, of Parma, Mich., with being a felon in possession of six different firearms.

Former National Security Agency (NSA) senior executive Thomas A. Drake pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Baltimore to a one-count criminal information charging him with unauthorized access of an NSA computer.

The former treasurer and the former president of Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TBW) were sentenced today to 72 months in prison and 30 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in a more than $2.9 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failures of TBW and Colonial Bank.

Two Miami-area residents who were officers of a fraudulent physical therapy company in Lakeland, Fla., pleaded guilty today for their roles in a scheme to defraud Medicare.

Novo Nordisk Inc., a Danish pharmaceutical manufacturer, has agreed to pay $25 million to resolve its civil liability arising from the illegal promotion of its hemostasis management drug, NovoSeven.

A settlement has been reached with Hecla Mining Company to resolve one of the largest cases ever filed under the Superfund statute. Under the settlement, Hecla will pay $263.4 million plus interest to the United States, the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and the state of Idaho to resolve claims stemming from releases of wastes from its mining operations.

Bidemi Bello, 41, a former resident of Suwanee, Ga., and a citizen of Nigeria, was convicted on eight counts by a federal jury late on Friday on charges of two counts of forced labor, two counts of trafficking for forced labor, one count of document servitude, one count of alien harboring and two counts of making false statements in an application to become a U.S. citizen.

A former U.S. Army major pleaded guilty today to bribery related to his work as a contracting officer’s representative in Kuwait from 2004 to 2006.

The United States has filed a complaint under the False Claims Act (FCA) against Bay Area Sleep Associates LLC, dba SomnoMedics LLC, and its owner, Edward Killmer Jr.

"As members of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, and participants in this conference – whether you come from the private sector; a university; federal, state, or local government; or elsewhere – I know at least one thing about you: You care about rooting out, and preventing, financial fraud."

Bruce Schwartz, 53, Sam Wongsesanit, 40, and Shane Germann, 42, have pleaded guilty to human trafficking violations involving the Los Angeles based recruiting company Global Horizons.

A federal jury in New Haven, Conn., today voted unanimously to impose the federal death penalty against Azibo Aquart for his role in the murder of three individuals.

Laquanta Grant, a resident of Montgomery, Ala., has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to file false claims for refunds.

A former vice president of an Illinois refuse disposal container repair company was sentenced today to serve 16 months in prison and to pay a $40,000 criminal fine for his role in a conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in connection with bids on a contract with the city of Chicago.

According to court findings, HedgeLender, which maintained offices in Philadelphia and Reston, Va., promoted a scheme purportedly allowing owners of appreciated stock to obtain cash through purported loans without reporting or paying tax on capital gains.

Swift Beef Company, a subsidiary of JBS S.A, the world’s largest beef producer, has agreed to pay $1.3 million to the United States and state of Nebraska to settle alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act and Nebraska state law at its Grand Island, Neb., beef processing plant.

The Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance today announced the Building Neighborhood Capacity Program Training and Technical Assistance Coordinator Solicitation, part of an innovative approach to build capacity in distressed neighborhoods.

Betty Washington, a resident of Montgomery County, Ala., was sentenced today to 21 months in prison and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,440,632 for conspiring to file false claims for refunds.

Dimitrios Grifakis, 57, of Kallithea, Greece, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Marvin J. Garbis to six months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for obstructing a Coast Guard inspection that took place in May 2010 aboard a Liberian-operated cargo ship M/V Capitola at the Port of Baltimore.

"As we have seen repeatedly – most clearly on September 11th and in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina – in times of crisis and emergency, law enforcement officers and first responders must be able to communicate quickly, across all jurisdictions. And as national security and public safety threats have continued to grow and to evolve, the need to bring public safety communications into the 21st century has never been greater."

"This Administration is moving in a direction that is guided, not by fear – but by fact, by reason, and by a commitment to advancing the cause of justice and to upholding our nation’s most essential and enduring values."

The United States, the California Department of Fish and Game and the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Coast Region, filed a civil complaint today in federal court against Greka Oil & Gas Inc. alleging that the company violated federal and state water laws.

Fluor Hanford Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fluor Federal Services Inc. and Fluor Corporation, has agreed to pay the United States $4 million to resolve allegations that it knowingly submitted false claims, and paid and received kickbacks.

A former senior vice president and head of Colonial Bank’s Mortgage Warehouse Lending Division was sentenced today to eight years in prison for her role in a more than $2.9 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failures of Colonial Bank and Taylor, Bean & Whitaker.

"By coming together, we’re signaling – to the citizens we serve and to those who would threaten the strength of our health care system – that a new era of communication and cooperation has begun, and that this Administration’s commitment to fighting health care fraud has never been stronger."

Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, Kerr-McGee Corporation and their affiliates have agreed to pay the United States more than $17 million to resolve claims that the companies violated the False Claims Act by knowingly underpaying royalties owed on natural gas produced from federal and Indian leases, and numerous additional administrative claims.

An Iowa ready-mix concrete company pleaded guilty to participating in a price-fixing conspiracy for the sales of ready-mix concrete.

The Justice Department today announced it has filed a lawsuit alleging that Waupaca County, Wis., discriminated against Waupaca County Sheriff’s Department patrol officer Julie Ann Thobaben because of her gender when it failed to promote her.

The Justice Department announced that it has reached an agreement with the city of Manassas Park, Va., that, if approved by the court, will allow for the city to bail out from its status as a “covered jurisdiction” under the special provisions of the Voting Rights Act, and thereby exempt the city from the preclearance requirements of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

An owner of a Houston health care company pleaded guilty today in connection with a $654,227 Medicare fraud scheme.

Sean Roberts and Nadia Roberts of Tehachapi, Calif., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anthony W. Ishii of the Eastern District of California to a criminal information charging them with filing a false tax return related to an undisclosed Swiss bank account that they maintained at UBS, as well as other offshore bank accounts.

Today, the Departments of Justice and Interior applauded the final approval by U.S. Senior District Judge Thomas F. Hogan of Cobell v. Salazar, a long-running and contentious individual American Indian trust class-action lawsuit.

"I know with all of us working together to shape our future – thinking together in new ways and re-imagining our potential – the victim service field will be stronger, more effective, and better able to ensure a safer and more just world."

A Pittsburgh man has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of conspiring to conduct a racketeering enterprise related to his membership in a Pittsburgh Crips gang

A Nashville, Tenn., man pleaded guilty today to conspiring to participate in racketeering activity related to his membership in the Bloods criminal enterprise.

A former co-owner of an Illinois-based technology company, Global Networking Technologies Inc. (GNT), was sentenced today to serve one year and a day in prison for his participation in a conspiracy to defraud the federal E-Rate program.

An 11-count indictment unsealed today in federal court in Wheeling, W.V., charges an Army sergeant first class and his associate for their alleged roles in a bribery and money laundering scheme at Camp Arifjan, a U.S. military base in Kuwait.

George H. Lunt, 27, of Plymouth, Mass., was sentenced today to 96 months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release for his transportation and possession of child pornography.

The Justice Department announced that former Hickman County Deputy Sheriff Kenneth H. Smith, 43, pleaded guilty today to violating the rights of two women by photographing parts of their unclothed bodies under the false pretense that those photographs were necessary for an official investigation.