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Supervisor for Texas Natural Gas and Oil Drilling Company Pleads Guilty in Oklahoma to Negligent Violation of Clean Water Act

Gabriel Henson, a supervisor for Integrated Production Services, Inc., a Houston-based natural gas and oil drilling contractor, pleaded guilty to a negligent violation of the Clean Water Act in federal court in Muskogee, Okla.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Patient Recruiter for Miami Health Care Agency Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

A patient recruiter of a Miami health care agency pleaded guilty today for his participation in a $25 million home health Medicare fraud scheme.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Longtime Associate of the New England La Cosa Nostra Pleads Guilty in Extortion and Racketeering Conspiracy

Thomas Iafrate, 70, of Johnston, R.I., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Providence, R.I., today to participating in an extortion and racketeering conspiracy that shook down several Rhode Island businesses for “protection” payments.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Departments of Justice, Homeland Security and Labor Announce Selection of Anti-Trafficking Coordination Teams

The Departments of Justice, Homeland Security and Labor announced today the selection of Pilot Anti-Trafficking Coordination Teams (ACTeams) as part of a nationwide Human Trafficking Enhanced Enforcement Initiative designed to better coordinate federal criminal investigations and prosecutions of human trafficking offenses.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Arkansas Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crime for Cross Burning

Curtis Coffee, 19, of Salado, Ark., pleaded guilty today to criminal violations of housing rights related to his role in the Aug. 28, 2010, cross burning in front of an African-American man’s apartment in Salado.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Northern Virginia Resident Pleads Guilty to Tax Evasion and Impeding the Internal Revenue Service

Thomas J. Ernst, formerly a resident of McLean and Arlington, Va., pleaded guilty to one count of corruptly endeavoring to impede and impair the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and one count of tax evasion for 2005.



  • OPA Press Releases

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

Sirtaj Mathauda, a former resident of South Florida, was sentenced today in connection with a series of Costa Rica-based business opportunity fraud ventures.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, Sheriff’s Sergeant Charged with Civil Rights Violations

The Justice Department announced today that a federal grand jury in Birmingham, Ala., returned a three-count indictment charging former Tuscaloosa Sheriff’s sergeant, Althea Mallisham, 52, with federal civil rights crimes for using a stun gun on three jail detainees in 2008.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Reaches Agreement with Bedford County, Virginia, on Bailout Under the Voting Rights Act

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



  • OPA Press Releases

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Deputy Attorney General James Cole Appoints Stuart M. Goldberg as Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General and David A. O’Neil as Chief of Staff

Deputy Attorney General James Cole today announced the appointment of Stuart M. Goldberg as the Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General and David A. O’Neil as the Chief of Staff to the Deputy Attorney General.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Deputy Assistant Attorney General Bruce Swartz of the Criminal Division Speaks Before the Senate Judiciary Committee

"As the Deputy Assistant Attorney General responsible for international affairs, I am grateful for this opportunity to express the Department of Justice’s strong support for the Consular Notification Compliance Act of 2011."




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Caterpillar Inc. to Pay $2.55 Million Penalty to Resolve Clean Air Act Violations

Caterpillar Inc. has agreed to pay a $2.55 million civil penalty to settle alleged Clean Air Act violations for shipping more than 590,000 highway and non-road engines without the correct emissions controls.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Attorney General Holder, Justice Department Officials Hold Listening Conference with Tribal Leaders in Rapid City & Pine Ridge Reservation, South Dakota

Attorney General Eric Holder and other administration officials met this week with tribal leaders and advocates to discuss issues of tribal safety and domestic violence in Rapid City, S.D., and Pine Ridge Reservation, S.D.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Dow Chemical Agrees to Pay $2.5 Million Penalty to Resolve Air, Water and Waste Violations at Its Midland Michigan Complex

The Dow Chemical Company has agreed to pay a $2.5 million civil penalty to settle alleged violations of the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and the Resource Conversation and Recovery Act at its chemical manufacturing and research complex in Midland, Michigan.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Florida Man Pleads Guilty to $30 Million Investment Fraud Scheme

David R. Lewalski, formerly of Gainesville, Fla., pleaded guilty today to mail fraud in connection with his operation of a $30 million investment fraud scheme, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Robert E. O’Neill of the Middle District of Florida.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Attorney General Eric Holder Speaks at the Office of Community Oriented Policing Service Annual Conference

"In their work with agencies and police departments nationwide, the COPS Office has driven vital efforts to improve public safety strategies and law enforcement operations. This collaboration has led to historic reductions in crime – and helped to secure and empower communities across the country."




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Miami-Area Resident Pleads Guilty to Participating in $200 Million Medicare Fraud Scheme

A Miami-area resident pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Miami for his role in two separate fraud schemes that resulted in the submission of more than $200 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Micronesian Couple Pleads Guilty in Washington to Withholding Passport in Connection with Human Trafficking Violations

Edk Kenit, 29, and Choimina Lukas, 31, a Micronesian couple living in Longview, Wash., pleaded guilty today to document servitude in connection with a scheme to compel the labor of an 18-year-old woman, also from Micronesia.



  • OPA Press Releases

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UBS Client Pleads Guilty to Filing False Tax Return

Robert E. Greeley, a resident of San Francisco, pleaded guilty today to charges of filing a false federal income tax return.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Two Loan Officers and One Title Agent Charged in $2.5 Million Reverse Mortgage and Loan Modification Scheme Plead Guilty in Miami

Louis Gendason of Delray Beach, Fla.; Kimberly Mackey of Pittsburgh; and John Incandela, of Palm Beach, Fla., pleaded guilty today to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud for their participation in a $2.5 million Home Equity Conversion Mortgage, or reverse mortgage, fraud scheme.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Las Vegas Real Estate Agent Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud and Bankruptcy Fraud Charges

German A. Posada of Las Vegas pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Philip M. Pro to charges of filing a false 2004 individual income tax return and making a false statement in a bankruptcy proceeding.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Alabama Return Preparers Charged with Conspiracy, Identity Theft, Filing False Tax Returns and Lying to Federal Agents

Yumeitrius Manuel and Margaret Kirksey, both of Montgomery, Ala., were indicted by a federal grand jury today on charges of conspiracy, identity theft, wire fraud, false claims and lying to federal agents.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Sues City of Joliet, Illinois, to Preserve Affordable Housing for City Residents

The Department of Justice today filed a lawsuit against the city of Joliet, Ill., alleging that the city violated the Fair Housing Act and the Housing and Community Development Act by taking a series of actions, culminating in the taking through eminent domain a federally-subsidized affordable housing development, that would displace more than 750 residents with low incomes, more than 95 percent of whom are African-American.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Two Mexican Nationals Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Sex Trafficking

The Justice Department announced today that two Mexican nationals, Israel Cortes-Morales, 31, and Alberto Cortes-Castro, 30, pleaded guilty in federal district court in Miami to charges of conspiring to commit sex trafficking of Mexican women.



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Former Willacy Detention Center Contract Security Officer Pleads Guilty to Sexual Abuse of a Female Detainee in Texas

The Justice Department announced today that former Contract Security Officer Edwin Rodriguez, 30, pleaded guilty to engaging in sexual abuse of a female detainee under his supervision and control.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Pittsburgh Crips Leader Pleads Guilty to Racketeering Charges

Robert Colbert, of Pittsburgh, pleaded guilty today in federal court to charges of conspiring to conduct a racketeering enterprise.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Two Chinese Defendants Plead Guilty in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Trafficking in Counterfeit Perfume

Shaoxiong Zhou and Shaoxia Huang, both of Shantou, Guangdong, China, have pleaded guilty to trafficking in counterfeit perfume.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Pickens County, Ala., Board of Education to Eliminate Racial Disparities

The Department of Justice today announced that it has entered into a settlement agreement with private plaintiffs and the Pickens County, Ala., Board of Education that requires the board to institute a series of educational reforms designed to eliminate the remaining vestiges of its formerly segregated school system.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Pennsylvania Man Pleads Guilty to Terrorist Solicitation and Firearms Offense

Emerson Winfield Begolly, 22, of New Bethlehem, Pa., pleaded guilty today in Pittsburgh to soliciting others to engage in acts of terrorism within the United States and to using a firearm during and in relation to an assault on FBI agents.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Brooklyn Man Pleads Guilty to Online Identity Theft Involving More Than $700,000 in Reported Fraud

A Brooklyn, N.Y., man pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va., for his role in managing a credit card fraud operation that operated throughout the East Coast of the United States.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former TSA Employee Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crime for Assaulting Elderly Somali Man

George Thompson, 64, a former employee of the Transportation Security Administration in Minneapolis, pleaded guilty today in federal court to violating the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act by assaulting an 83-year-old Somali man on May 4, 2010.



  • OPA Press Releases

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U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant from South Carolina Pleads Guilty for Role in Scheme to Steal Military Equipment in Iraq

Eric Scott Hamilton, 40, of Pelzer, S.C., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge J. Michelle Childs in the District of South Carolina to a criminal information charging him with two counts of conspiracy to steal public property.



  • OPA Press Releases

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The City of Newport, R.I., Will Upgrade Facilities and Pay Fine to Settle Clean Water Violations

Under the terms of a settlement filed today in federal court, the city of Newport has agreed to eliminate illegal discharges of sewage into Narragansett Bay from its wastewater treatment plant and wastewater collection system.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Russell County, Ala., Sheriff Deputy Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights Charge for Assaulting a Handcuffed Man

Kirby Dollar, 37, a former detective with the Russell County Sheriff’s Office, pleaded guilty in federal court in Montgomery, Ala., for his role in the assault of a handcuffed man.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Mansfield, Texas, Man Admits to Theft of Government Property and Aggravated Identity Theft

Thomas W. Richardson of Mansfield, Texas, pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government property and one count of aggravated identity theft before the Honorable Jane J. Boyle in Dallas.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Virginia Woman Pleads Guilty in Relation to Staged Kidnapping in Guatemala

Sheena Flores, 34, of Manassas, Va., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee to one count of transmitting in foreign commerce, with intent to extort money, a communication containing a threat to injure another person.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Owners of Florida Airline Fuel Supply and Indiana Flight Management Services Companies Plead Guilty in Schemes to Defraud Ryan International Airlines

A former owner and operator of a Florida-based airline fuel supply service company and a former owner and operator of an Indiana-based flight management services company pleaded guilty today to participating in separate schemes to defraud Ryan International Airlines, a charter airline company located in Rockford, Ill.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Braintree, Mass., Waste Facility Agrees to Spend More Than $1.7 Million to Settle Alleged Hazardous Waste Violations

In a settlement valued at more than $1.7 million, Clean Harbors of Braintree Inc. has agreed to pay a significant penalty and perform additional projects, to settle a complaint filed by the U.S. Department of Justice on behalf of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), regarding numerous violations of hazardous waste management and emergency planning laws at the company’s Braintree, Mass., facility.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Nautilus Hyosung Holdings Agrees to Plead Guilty to Obstruction of Justice for Submitting False Documents in a Merger Investigation

Nautilus Hyosung Holdings Inc. has agreed to plead guilty and pay a $200,000 criminal fine for obstruction of justice in connection with a premerger filing and investigation by the Antitrust Division.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Worth County Sheriff Pleads Guilty to Violating the Civil Rights of Eight Women in Missouri

The Department of Justice announced today that Neal Wayne “Bear” Groom, former sheriff of the Worth County, Mo., Sheriff’s Office, pleaded guilty to depriving eight Missouri women of their civil rights by coercing the women to expose parts of their bodies to him, which was in violation of the Fourth Amendment prohibition against unreasonable seizures.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Former Owner of New York City Garment Assembly Company Pleads Guilty for Failing to Pay Employment Taxes

David Chui, a resident of Queens, N.Y., pleaded guilty to failing to pay employment taxes in connection with his former ownership of a garment assembly business.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Announces Agreement to Protect Prisoners from Life-threatening Conditions at Erie County, New York, Facilities

The Justice Department announced today that it has filed a stipulated order of dismissal to resolve its lawsuit concerning conditions of confinement at the Erie County Holding Center, a pre-trial detention center in Buffalo, N.Y., and the Erie County Correctional Facility, a correctional facility in Alden, N.Y.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Puerto Rican-based Shipping Company Sentenced to Pay $700,000 Penalty for Intentional Cover-Up of Oil Pollution

Epps Shipping Company, a Liberian corporation doing business out of Carolina, Puerto Rico, was sentenced in federal court for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) and making false statements to U.S. Coast Guard inspectors.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Two Men Plead Guilty to Racially-Motivated Assault in New Mexico

Paul Beebe and Jesse Sanford of Farmington, N.M., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque, N.M., to federal hate crime charges related to a racially-motivated assault on a 22-year-old developmentally disabled man of Navajo descent.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Pittsburgh Crips Member and Associate Plead Guilty for Roles in Illegal Gang Activity

A Crips gang member and associate each pleaded guilty today in federal court in Pittsburgh to racketeering charges.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Justice Department Opens Investigation into the Antelope Valley Stations of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department

The Justice Department has opened a civil investigation into allegations of discriminatory policing by Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) members based in the cities of Lancaster and Palmdale, Calif.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Businessman Pleads Guilty in Utah to Tax Charge

Scott Robertson pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Brooke C. Wells in Salt Lake City to one count of making and subscribing a false tax return for 2003.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Department of Health and Human Services Employee Pleads Guilty to Theft of Government Funds

Jihan S. Cover, 33, of Arden, N.C., pleaded guilty before Magistrate Judge Dennis L. Howell in the Western District of North Carolina to a one-count criminal information charging her with theft of government property.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Miami-Area Doctor Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme

Jose Nunez, 63, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard in Miami to one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud.



  • OPA Press Releases

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Three New Jersey Investors Plead Guilty to Bid Rigging at Municipal Tax Lien Auctions

Three financial investors who purchased municipal tax liens at auctions in New Jersey pleaded guilty today for their roles in a conspiracy to rig bids at tax liens auctions held by municipalities.



  • OPA Press Releases