A 63-count superseding indictment charging Chatonda Khofi, Ishmael Kosh, Amadou Sangaray and Francis Saygbay in a conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) was unsealed on Monday, December 23, in Minneapolis, Minn.

A federal court in Montgomery, Ala., permanently barred Kenya Hendrix Adams from preparing tax returns for others, the Justice Department announced today.

U.S. District Court Judge Kim R. Gibson of the Western District of Pennsylvania has entered a consent decree of permanent injunction against Metzler & Sons LLC and Pleasant View Farms Inc., the Justice Department announced today.

Conrad Alvin Barrett, 27, has been charged with a federal hate crime related to a racially-motivated assault of a 79-year-old African American man.

Abbott Laboratories has agreed to pay the United States $5.475 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to induce doctors to implant the company’s carotid, biliary and peripheral vascular products, the Justice Department announced today.

An Eastern California real estate investor pleaded guilty today to conspiring to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Eastern California.

St. James Healthcare (St. James), a hospital located in Butte, Mont., and its parent company, Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth Health System (Sisters of Charity), a health care organization based in Denver, Colo., have agreed to pay $3.85 million to resolve allegations that they violated the Anti-Kickback Statute, the Stark Law and the False Claims Act by improperly providing financial benefits to physicians and physician groups that made referrals to the hospital.

The Department of Justice today announced that it will require Heraeus Electro-Nite LLC to divest certain assets that it acquired from Midwest Instrument Company Inc. (Minco) to Keystone Sensors LLC in order to resolve the department’s competitive concerns.

Three Northern California real estate investors have agreed to plead guilty for their roles in conspiracies to rig bids and commit mail fraud at public real estate foreclosure auctions in Northern California.

The Department of Justice today announced it is proposing a regulation that will clarify who, due to mental health reasons, is prohibited under federal law from receiving, possessing, shipping or transporting firearms. In addition to providing general guidance on the federal law, this clarification will help states determine what information may be appropriately shared with the federal background check system for firearms transfers – the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) – in order to keep guns out of the hands of individuals who may be a danger to themselves or others.

A Dallas-based group of companies and their owner must either stop importing vehicles or follow a comprehensive compliance plan to settle Clean Air Act (CAA) violations stemming from the alleged illegal import of over 24,167 highway motorcycles and recreational vehicles into the United States without proper documentation.

RBS Securities Japan Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Royal Bank of Scotland plc (RBS) that engages in investment banking operations with its principal place of business in Tokyo, Japan, was sentenced today for its role in manipulating the Japanese Yen London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR).

Two former chief executive officers of PetroTiger Ltd. – a British Virgin Islands oil and gas company with operations in Colombia and offices in New Jersey – have been charged for their alleged participation in a scheme to pay bribes to foreign government officials in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

A Florida-based physician, Dr. Ravi Sharma, has agreed to pay $400,000 to resolve allegations that he and his clinics violated the False Claims Act by knowingly billing Medicare for vein injections and physician office visits performed by unqualified personnel.

The owner and operator of a Miami medical clinic pleaded guilty today in connection with multiple health care fraud schemes involving the defunct clinic Merfi Corp.

Several patient recruiters, including a medical clinic owner, pleaded guilty today in connection with a health care fraud scheme involving Flores Home Health Care Inc., a defunct home health care company.

Jay G. Conrad, of Lakeland, Tenn., pleaded guilty today in the District of Maine to conspiring to illegally import and traffic narwhal tusks, conspiring to launder money, and illegally trafficking narwhal tusks.

ArthroCare Corporation, a medical device manufacturer based in Austin, Texas, and that trades on the NASDAQ stock exchange, has agreed to pay a $30 million monetary penalty to resolve charges that senior executives at the company engaged in a securities fraud scheme that resulted in more than $400 million in shareholder losses.

The Department of Justice (DOJ), in collaboration with the Department of Education (ED), today released a school discipline guidance package that will assist states, districts and schools in developing practices and strategies to enhance school climate, and ensure those policies and practices comply with federal law.

Christopher W. Loncarich, 55, of Mack, Colo., and Nicholaus J. Rodgers, 30, of Medford, Or., were charged yesterday in the District of Colorado with conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act.

A Florida man was sentenced to serve 15 months in prison, and his wife was sentenced to 24 months of probation, for their roles in a bribery and fraud scheme.

The Justice Department announced today that it has closed its investigation of State Correctional Institution – Pittsburgh after the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PDOC) significantly improved security policies and practices at the prison and throughout the Pennsylvania prison system.

The United States has settled a housing discrimination lawsuit in Euless, Texas, concerning discrimination against persons of Middle Eastern and South Asian descent, the Justice Department announced today.

"Too often, so-called “zero-tolerance” policies – however well-intentioned – make students feel unwelcome in their own schools. They disrupt the learning process. And they can have significant and lasting negative effects on the long-term well-being of our young people – increasing their likelihood of future contact with juvenile and criminal justice systems," said Attorney General Holder.

Alcoa World Alumina LLC, a majority-owned and controlled global alumina sales company of Alcoa Inc., has agreed to plead guilty later today and pay $223 million in criminal fines and forfeiture to resolve charges that it paid millions of dollars in bribes through an international middleman in London.

Attorney General Eric Holder today announced that the Justice Department collected at least $8 billion in civil and criminal actions in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2013.

CareFusion Corp. has agreed to pay the government $40.1 million to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks and promoting its products for uses that were not approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

Michigan-based Cadillac Asphalt LLC (Cadillac) and Michigan Paving and Materials Co. (MPM), have agreed to pay $3.8 million to resolve allegations that they falsely claimed Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) credits on a number of federally funded transportation projects.

A former mayor of South Pittsburg, Tenn., and an associate were sentenced today in Chattanooga, Tenn., for managing an illegal gambling business.

Two individuals charged with running a telemarketing operation that defrauded Spanish-speaking consumers were sentenced today in Miami federal district court.

A federal grand jury in Fort Myers, Fla., indicted former Desoto County Sheriff’s Office deputies Steven Rizza and Jonathan Mause today for charges related to the violation of the civil rights of an inmate who was assaulted by Rizza at the Desoto County Jail and the ensuing obstruction of the investigation into that offense.

Edwin Stigile, formerly a Lieutenant at Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., and two former RCI Correctional Officers, Tyson Hinckle and Reginald Martin, each pleaded guilty to an offense arising out of the assault of an inmate on Mar. 9, 2008.

Detrick and Natashia Tucker, a husband and wife who owned and operated a tax preparation business named T&T Express Tax located in Pine Mountain, Ga., pleaded guilty today to crimes relating to the preparation of false tax returns, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division and U.S. Attorney Michael J. Moore for the Middle District of Georgia.

"We are pleased that the court, after carefully weighing all of the evidence, agreed with the Justice Department that Bazaarvoice’s acquisition of PowerReviews was likely to extinguish price competition and substantially diminish the pace of innovation in the market for product ratings and reviews platforms," said Assistant Attorney General Baer.

The U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) today announced appointments to a newly created National Commission on Forensic Science.

Michael R. Barr, former chief executive officer of Louisville, Kentucky-based HealthEssentials Solutions Inc., has agreed to pay $1 million to resolve allegations that he knowingly caused HealthEssentials to submit false claims to Medicare between 1999 and 2004.

Attorney General Eric Holder issued the following statement today on the status of same-sex marriages performed in the state of Utah.

Michael Morgan, formerly an officer at Roxbury Correctional Institution (RCI) in Hagerstown, Md., pleaded guilty today to assaulting an inmate on March 9, 2008, announced the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.

Michael Slattery Jr., an Irish national, was sentenced in federal court in Brooklyn, N.Y., today to serve 14 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Today, the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia announced that Kerry Bolden, a former employee of the Correctional Emergency Response Team (CERT) at Macon State Prison (MSP) in Oglethorpe, Ga., pleaded guilty to civil rights and conspiracy charges.

The U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina and the North Carolina Department of Justice filed a lawsuit today alleging that the owners and operators of two “buy here, pay here” used-car dealerships in Charlotte, N.C., violated the federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act by intentionally targeting African-American customers for the extension and servicing of installment sale contracts on unfair and predatory terms.

Rakecia Matrese Brame, formerly of Greensboro, N.C., and now of Grand Prairie, Texas, pleaded guilty on Jan. 10, 2014, to identity theft, tax, and fraud charges, the Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today.

The government has intervened in eight False Claims Act lawsuits against Health Management Associates Inc. (HMA) alleging that HMA billed federal health care programs for medically unnecessary inpatient admissions from the emergency departments at HMA hospitals and paid remuneration to physicians in exchange for patient referrals.

Two former Coöperatieve Centrale Raiffeisen-Boerenleenbank B.A. (Rabobank) Japanese Yen derivatives traders and the trader responsible for setting Rabobank’s Yen London InterBank Offered Rate (LIBOR) were charged as part of the ongoing criminal investigation into the manipulation of LIBOR.

A former disc jockey for area high school parties pleaded guilty today in the District of Puerto Rico to producing child pornography.

Today the District Court in the District of Columbia dismissed a challenge filed by the Florida Bankers Association and Texas Bankers Association challenging 2012 amendments to the Department of the Treasury’s interest-reporting regulations.

Nakia Jackson pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of aggravated identity theft for his role in a stolen identity refund fraud scheme, announced Assistant Attorney General Kathryn Keneally of the Justice Department's Tax Division, U.S. Attorney George L. Beck Jr. for the Middle District of Alabama and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

A former Lorain County, Ohio, corrections officer was sentenced today to serve 18 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release after previously pleading guilty to one count of deprivation of rights under color of law.

The Justice Department and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced today that Jimmie Duane Ross, of Lehi, Utah, and formerly of Sevierville, Tenn., was sentenced to serve 51 months in prison based on his Aug. 7, 2013 conviction of five counts of tax evasion following a jury trial.

Two former Miami real estate agents were sentenced today for their roles in a $2.4 million mortgage fraud scheme.