Month: April 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA — Chad Horst Kramolowski, 35, of Mount Pleasant, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for possession of child pornography.

Evidence presented to the Court showed that on May 16, 2018, the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) section received a CyberTipline Report from Facebook, Inc., who discovered evidence of alleged criminal activity on their servers. The CyberTipline Report showed that a Facebook user received an image of a minor appearing in a state of sexually explicit nudity. ICAC officers tracked the Facebook user’s IP address to Kramolowski’s residence in Mount Pleasant. On March 6, 2019, the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Kramolowski’s residence and found at least 20 images of child pornography, including images of prepubescent minors, on one of Kramolowski’s cell phones.  The investigation also revealed that Kramolowski was previously convicted in federal court for possession of child pornography and was sentenced in 2008 to 30 months in federal prison.

United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel sentenced Kramolowski to 120 months in federal prison, to be followed by a lifetime term of court-ordered supervision.  There is no parole in the federal system. 

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Charleston County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Dean H. Secor prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

Columbia, South Carolina – Angela Marie Gantt, age 37, of Lexington, was sentenced to ten years in federal prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition. Senior United States District Judge Terry L. Wooten of Columbia imposed the sentence. After her release from prison, Gantt will remain under court-ordered supervision for an additional 3 years. There is no parole in the federal system. 

Evidence presented in court established that on June 29, 2020, an officer with the South Congaree Police Department responded to an accident in South Congaree where it was reported that a driver, later identified as Gantt, had struck a tree on private property and was attempting to leave the scene. The officer made contact with Gantt and learned she was driving under suspension.  A K-9 Officer responded to the scene, and the K-9 alerted to the presence of illegal narcotics in the car.  A search of the car recovered approximately 118 grams of methamphetamine and a Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol.

Federal law prohibits Gantt from possessing firearms and ammunition based upon multiple prior state convictions.  Gantt’s prior state record includes possession of methamphetamine in 2006, manufacturing methamphetamine in 2007, possession of methamphetamine in 2010, conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine in 2012, and possession of methamphetamine in 2014 and 2015.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, South Congaree Police Department, and Pine Ridge Police Department. It was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime. Special Assistant United States Attorney Casey Rankin Smith of the 11^th Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office prosecuted the case.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

Miami, Florida – A former police officer with the Sewall’s Point, Florida Police Department has pled guilty in Ft. Pierce federal court to attempting to sexually entice a 15-year-old boy and produce child pornography.

According to court records, Juan Antonio Garcia, 30, of Stuart, met the 15-year-old victim at a local park.  Garcia befriended the boy and communicated with him in person and by text message.  During one meeting, Garcia gave the boy condoms.  Through text messages, Garcia taught the boy how to put on a condom, then directed the boy to masturbate, ejaculate into the condom, and send Garcia a photograph of the used item.  Garcia also asked the boy to send him a video of the boy masturbating.  In another text message, Garcia asked the minor to meet him at a local park for oral sex.  When Garcia arrived at the park, law enforcement officers arrested him.

United States District Court Judge Aileen M. Cannon will sentence Garcia on June 13, at 11:00 a.m., in Fort Pierce.  Garcia faces between 15 years to life in prison.  

Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Anthony Salisbury, Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Miami Field Office made the announcement.

HSI Fort Pierce investigated the case, with assistance from Martin County Sheriff’s Office.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Stacey Bergstrom is prosecuting the case.  

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 21-cr-14044.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Victorious Minter, age 36, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, was indicted yesterday by a federal grand jury for unlawfully possessing a firearm as a convicted felon.

According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, the indictment alleges that on January 5, 2022, Minter possessed a loaded Glock 22 .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, after having previously been convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison.  

The matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Scranton Police Department, and the Lackawanna County District Attorney’s Office.  Special Assistant United States Attorney Brian Gallagher and Assistant United States Attorney James Buchanan are prosecuting the case.

This case is being prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.  Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

The maximum penalty under federal law for these offenses is ten years’ imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.  A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

HARRISBURG- The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Keith McConnell, age 43, of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, was sentenced yesterday to 18 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Judge Christopher C. Conner for perpetrating a wire fraud and money laundering scheme which sought $467,200 in COVID-19 relief funds guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).   

The PPP was designed to help small businesses facing financial difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Funded by the March 27, 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, PPP funds were offered in forgivable loans to small businesses for employee job retention and certain other expenses.  PPP loan amounts were determined by the number of employees and average monthly payroll costs. 

According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, McConnell submitted fraudulent PPP loan applications and forged documents on behalf of his Carlisle-area trucking company, KB Transportation LLC.  In both 2019 and 2020, KB Transportation LLC was not in business, had no employees, and had no payroll expenses.  On June 5, 2020, however, McConnell falsely certified that KB Transportation LLC employed twenty-six employees and had monthly payroll expenses totaling $124,800.  As a result of the fraud, McConnell received $312,000 in PPP loan proceeds.  Within weeks, McConnell spent the PPP funds on unauthorized expenditures including the purchase of a residential property, two personal vehicles, cash withdrawals, and stock market investments.  On January 20, 2021, McConnell used KB Transportation LLC to apply for a second PPP loan in the amount of $155,200, and again submitted false and fraudulent loan applications and documents.  The second PPP loan was never disbursed.     

In addition to the 18-month prison sentence, the Court ordered Keith McConnell to serve three years of supervised release following incarceration, and to pay $312,200 in restitution for disbursement to the victims of his crimes.  To date, McConnell has paid back $237,515.50 in restitution. 

The case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI).  Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel S. Dalke prosecuted the case. 

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by, among other methods, augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts. For more information on the Department’s response to the pandemic, please visit https://www.justice.gov/coronavirus.

Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline at 866-720-5721 or via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.

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