Month: August 2021

Source: United States Department of Justice News

A California couple pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit forced labor. According to court documents, Nery A. Martinez Vasquez, 53, and his wife Maura N. Martinez, 53, both of Shasta Lake, are naturalized United States citizens, originally from Guatemala. They owned and operated Latino’s, a restaurant, and Redding Carpet Cleaning & Janitorial Services, a cleaning company that serviced various businesses, including multiple car dealerships, in the Shasta Lake area.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

The Department of Justice announced today that it will begin the process of remitting forfeited funds to FIFA, the world organizing body of soccer; CONCACAF, the confederation responsible for soccer governance in North and Central America, among other regions; CONMEBOL, the confederation responsible for soccer governance in South America; and various constituent national soccer federations (collectively, the “Victims”). The department granted a joint petition for remission filed by the Victims, recognizing losses and granting remission up to a total of more than $201 million, of which $32.3 million in forfeited funds has been approved for an initial distribution. In total, well over the amount granted has been seized and has been or is expected to be forfeited to the United States in the Eastern District of New York as part of the government’s long-running investigation and prosecution of corruption in international soccer. 

Source: United States Department of Justice News

A Washington state tech executive was sentenced today in the Western District of Washington to two years in prison for perpetrating a scheme to fraudulently obtain COVID-19 disaster relief loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) through the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Matthew Curtis, age 24, of Hampstead, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to the federal charge of possession of child pornography. In September 2017, Curtis was convicted of possession of child pornography in the Circuit Court of Carroll County, Maryland and was sentenced to one year and six months in prison and three years’ probation.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – On Friday, a federal jury convicted James Bates (50, of Las Vegas) — who previously had been convicted of multiple felonies in Clark County, Nevada and Broward County, Florida — for unlawful possession of a firearm following a drug transaction.