The Department of Justice marked the start of Sunshine Week today with the launch of FOIA.gov, the “flagship initiative” of the department’s Open Government Plan and one of the most significant contributions yet toward making this the most transparent administration in history.

A New Jersey industrial pipe supply company and its owner pleaded guilty today to participating in a conspiracy to commit fraud and pay bribes to a purchasing manager at Consolidated Edison of New York (Con Edison) in return for the manager’s efforts to steer contracts to the company.

Alleged Mexican drug kingpin Esteban Rodriguez-Olivera, 47, was extradited from Mexico to the United States on Friday, March 11, 2011, and was arraigned today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cheryl L. Pollak at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, N.Y., on charges contained in a superseding indictment returned on March 21, 2008.

Raymond Bowman, the former president of Taylor, Bean & Whitaker, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit bank, wire and securities fraud, and lying to federal agents about his role in a fraud scheme that contributed to the failures of TBW and Colonial Bank.

Attorney General Eric Holder and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius visited Detroit today to participate in the fifth regional health care fraud prevention summit.

"This summit is an important step forward – an opportunity to build on what has been discussed, and achieved, since January of last year – when Secretary Sebelius and I convened the first “National Summit on Health Care Fraud” in Washington."

The two leaders of a Colorado-based scheme that defrauded more than 400 consumers throughout the country of $5 million were sentenced to prison.

Three former executives of Fair Financial Company, an Ohio financial services business, were arrested today and charged in an indictment filed in the Southern District of Indiana for their roles in a scheme to defraud approximately 5,000 investors of more than $200 million.

Teresa Kelly, a former operations supervisor in Colonial Bank’s Mortgage Warehouse Lending Division, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to commit bank, wire and securities fraud for her role in a fraud scheme that contributed to the failures of Colonial Bank and Taylor, Bean & Whitaker.

U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Irvin Hannis Catlett Jr., 64, of Crownsville, Md., today to 210 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release for tax offenses in connection with a scheme to prepare individual income tax returns for clients, which reported bogus tax losses from a purported car leasing company.

Nathan A. Peake, 40, a sports manager and resident of Silver Spring, Md., entered a plea of guilty today in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of tax evasion and one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud.

The Department of Justice reminds members of the public to be aware of and report any instances of suspected fraudulent charitable contribution schemes related to the natural disasters in Japan.

Murphy Hubbard, a Springfield, Mo., CPA, pleaded guilty to two counts of mail fraud and one count of tax evasion before Judge James England in the Western District of Missouri.

Kathryn Charles Miles and husband John Scott Miles, of Mathews County, Va., pleaded guilty to conspiring to impair and obstruct the IRS in the ascertainment and assessment of federal income taxes from 2001 through 2010.

A former executive of a California aftermarket auto lights distributor has agreed to plead guilty for his participation in a global conspiracy to fix the prices of aftermarket auto lights.

“Our law enforcement officers put themselves in harm’s way every day to ensure the safety and security of the American people in cities and communities across the country, and we need to do everything we can to protect them,” Attorney General Holder said.

Reynaldo Orozco pleaded guilty to one count of filing a false tax return before U.S. District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan in the Southern District of Florida.

A second New Jersey industrial pipe supply company and its owner pleaded guilty today to participating in a conspiracy to commit fraud and pay bribes to a purchasing manager at Consolidated Edison of New York (Con Edison) in return for the manager’s efforts to steer contracts to the company.

Christian M. Allmendinger, 39, of Houston, was convicted by a federal jury today for his role in a $100 million fraud scheme with more than 800 victims across the United States and Canada.

"For more than a quarter of a century, including eight years as Director, his service to the Bureau of Prisons has helped improve public safety, strengthen our corrections systems, and advance the Justice Department’s most critical goals."

The Justice Department announced today the arrest of Russell County Sheriff’s Office Detectives Kirby Dollar, 37, and Timothy Watford, 42.

A Miami-area doctor, Fred Dweck, was sentenced to 24 months in prison today for his role in a wide-ranging Medicare fraud scheme involving several Miami-area home health agencies.

A former owner of an Illinois-based technology company has pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to defraud the federal E-Rate program.

A Joint statement on behalf of the United States and the European Union:

A Los Angeles woman has pleaded guilty to using fraudulent medical clinics and the stolen identities of physicians to defraud Medicare of more than $6.2 million.

"As members of the military, you are leaders in our nation. Your communities admire you. Your voices matter. And your voices will make a key difference in changing the national dialogue on sexual assault. We can work together to achieve cultural change to stop sexual assault."

Loretta and Tracey Fergerson were indicted by a federal grand jury in the Middle District of Alabama on a variety of charges stemming from an identity theft and tax fraud conspiracy.

Chairman Wolf, Ranking Member Fattah and distinguished Members of the Subcommittee, I’m very pleased to be here to discuss the President’s 2012 budget request for the Office of Justice Programs.

Sean W. Ragland, a former senior financial analyst at Taylor, Bean &s mortgage lending facility, Ocala Funding.

A St. Petersburg, Fla., man was arrested today on bankruptcy fraud charges.

Paul Allen, the former chief executive officer at Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TBW), pleaded guilty today to making false statements and conspiring to commit bank and wire fraud for his role in a $1.5 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failure of TBW.

A 10-count federal indictment was unsealed today in the Eastern District of Virginia charging Stephen Bekale, Reynaldo “Christian” Villarroel, Maritza Villarroel, Irma DeMartini and Jamal Ibraheem with conspiring to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and money laundering.

A Laurel Springs, N.J., wastewater treatment and chemical supply company and its owner were sentenced today for participating in a fraud conspiracy in connection with sub-contracts for wastewater treatment supplies and services at two Superfund sites in New Jersey.

A Miami-area resident pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for her role in managing a community mental health care fraud scheme that resulted in the submission of more than $100 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare.

The Justice Department announced today the arrest of Sean Popejoy, 19, and Frankie Maybee, 20, both of Green Forest, Ark., on charges related to a racially-motivated assault on five Hispanic men.

A registered nurse employed by a Houston health care company pleaded guilty today in connection with an alleged $5.2 million Medicare fraud scheme.

Julius Everett “Bud” Johnson, of Richmond, Va., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Richmond for his role in an investment scheme resulting in millions of dollars in losses.

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

Sean T. Brehm, 44, of Capetown, South Africa, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga to assault resulting in serious bodily injury.

A federal court in Dallas has barred Arthur Piner Grider III from operating businesses under any name.

Two Miami-area residents and owners of a mental health care corporation, American Therapeutic Corporation (ATC), pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for orchestrating a fraud scheme that resulted in the submission of more than $200 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare.

Miami-area physician Rene De Los Rios was convicted of five felony counts today by a federal jury for his role in a $23 million dollar HIV injection and infusion Medicare fraud scheme.

Lee Bentley Farkas, the former chairman of a private mortgage lending company, Taylor, Bean & Whitaker (TBW), was convicted today for his role in a more than $2.9 billion fraud scheme that contributed to the failures of Colonial Bank, one of the 25 largest banks in the United States in 2009, and TBW, one of the largest privately held mortgage lending companies in the United States in 2009.

A Los Angeles-area man pleaded guilty today to establishing fraudulent medical clinics and using stolen identities of physicians to defraud Medicare of up to $13.7 million.

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced the formation of a Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force Working Group to focus specifically on fraud in the energy markets.

Rogelio Hackett Jr., 26, of Lithonia, Ga., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Judge Anthony J. Trenga in Alexandria, Va., to trafficking in counterfeit credit cards and aggravated identity theft.

A Las Vegas man was arrested yesterday on charges that he defrauded distressed homeowners in Las Vegas who were attempting to refinance or adjust their home mortgages.

Eric Bernard Caldwell, a resident of Montgomery County, Ala., pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the United States.

A New York stock broker has pleaded guilty in federal court in Detroit to conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud in connection with the Alan Ralsky spamming organization’s stock pump-and-dump scheme/

Two Miami-area medical assistants and a physician assistant were sentenced to prison today for their roles in a $23 million Medicare fraud scheme involving HIV infusion therapy.