Month: June 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

CINCINNATI – Two Cincinnati men were sentenced in U.S. District Court to more than 11 years in prison each for their roles in an armed carjacking.

Eric Lang, 32, was sentenced to 137 months in prison, and Garry Holmes, 38, was sentenced to 180 months in prison.

According to court documents, Lang and Holmes conspired to commit the carjacking after Lang saw their victim at a convenience store in the Northside neighborhood of Cincinnati. Lang and the victim knew each other from prison and talked about meeting up for a future drug transaction.

Lang and Holmes created a plan to steal the victim’s car at the drug meetup. On Jan. 10, 2020, the defendants, along with others, instructed the victim to drive to a parking lot away from main roadways. The co-conspirators pointed guns at the victim and had the victim lie face down on the ground while they stole the victim’s 2008 Mercedes Benz.

As the assailants drove away, individuals shot at the victim, striking him several times. The victim was shot in the head and legs, causing serious bodily injury, including permanent nerve damage in the legs and blindness in one eye.

Law enforcement officers recovered multiple shell casings at the scene and those casings were entered into the National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN). Agents learned via NIBIN that two firearms were fired at the carjacking on January 10 and that one of the firearms had been used in multiple shootings in January 2020. Law enforcement officers recovered that firearm from Holmes on March 3, 2020, after NIBIN showed the firearm was used in a shots fired incident the night before in Avondale.

As a convicted felon, Holmes was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio; Daryl S. McCormick, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF); and Cincinnati Interim Police Chief Teresa A. Theetge announced the sentences imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Douglas R. Cole. Assistant United States Attorney Ashley N. Brucato and Special Assistant United States Attorneys Meagan W. Myers and John Zachary Kessler of the Cincinnati City Solicitor’s Office are representing the United States in this case.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

INDIANAPOLIS – Brett Cearing, 30, of Attica, Indiana, was sentenced late yesterday to fifteen years in federal prison for sexually exploiting a 16-year-old minor and possessing child sexual abuse material.

According to court documents, Cearing was living with his girlfriend and her 14-year-old daughter in Attica. Beginning on May 4, 2020, and continuing until August 11, 2020, Cearing sexually exploited a 16-year-old child who was visiting his girlfriend’s daughter at Cearing’s residence. Cearing surreptitiously recorded the victim using a hidden camera disguised as a cell phone charger in a bathroom. The camera captured the child as she showered, used the restroom, and undressed. Cearing edited the videos and images to focus on the child’s genitalia and admitted in court that he recorded the child because he had a sexual interest in her. He hid the images and videos he produced of the minor child in a “Hyper Tornado Secret Calculator” application that featured a way to hide images and videos from view unless the user entered a certain key sequence on the calculator. Cearing also attempted to record his girlfriend’s 14-year-old daughter as she showered.

After Cearing was initially charged in August 2020 with child exploitation and voyeurism by the Fountain County Prosecutor’s Office, he posted bond and was released on pretrial supervision. On January 17, 2021, during his pretrial release, Cearing was arrested and charged with public indecency after he allegedly exposed himself and masturbated to a young woman in the Love’s parking lot in Knightstown, Indiana. Cearing was then charged with sexual exploitation of a child and possession of child pornography by federal complaint in the Southern District of Indiana and ordered detained by a federal magistrate judge.

Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana and Herbert J. Stapleton, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Indianapolis Field Office made the announcement.

The FBI Violent Crime Task Force investigated the case. The Fountain County Sheriff’s Department also provided valuable assistance. As part of Cearing’s sentence, Judge Barker ordered that he be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for 7 years following his release from prison and pay $10,000 in restitution to the victim. Cearing must also register as sex offender wherever he lives, works, or goes to school, as required by law.

U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany J. Preston who prosecuted this case.

In fiscal year 2019, the most recent year for which data is available, the Southern District of Indiana was second out of the 94 federal districts in the country for the number of child sexual exploitation cases prosecuted.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, 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.justice.gov/psc

Source: United States Department of Justice News

RALEIGH, N.C. – A man who shot at a Warren County Sheriff’s Deputy was sentenced yesterday in federal court to 120 months’ imprisonment for being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Rodriguez Crudup pled guilty to the charge on March 23, 2022.

U.S. Attorney Easley stated, “We stand with and will protect law enforcement who respond to dangerous situations.  Our office will continue to prosecute armed felons who threaten our community.” 

According to court documents and other information presented in court, on December 28, 2021, during the early morning hours, a deputy with the Warren County Sheriff’s Office responded to a domestic disturbance call at a residence in Warrenton, North Carolina.  The deputy was advised that Crudup, who was at the residence, took the victim’s loaded firearm and ran from the residence into the woods. The deputy heard Crudup running in the woods and ran towards the area identifying himself as a Warren County Sheriff’s Officer.  At this time a single shot was discharged by the defendant and the deputy heard the crack of a projectile pass over his head. The deputy retreated and took cover at his vehicle as he called additional units. Crudup was later arrested, and the loaded firearm was found in the woods where Crudup had been. An assessment of the firearm revealed it had jammed after the first round was discharged. Crudup’s prior convictions include breaking and entering, and two prior convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Judge James C. Dever rejected the defendant’s arguments that this was an accidental discharge and found the defendant intentionally fired his weapon at a law enforcement officer. The defendant was sentenced to the maximum sentence he could receive.

Michael Easley, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District James C. Dever.  The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the State Bureau of Investigation and the Warren County Sheriff’s Office  investigated the case and Assistant U.S. Attorneys  Jane J. Jackson  and Yasir Sadat prosecuted the case.

This case is part of 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. 

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:22-cr-00014-D-1.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – A federal jury returned a guilty verdict on June 16, 2022, against Monica Renee Wright, 38, of the 1600 block of Auburn Drive, Colorado Springs, Colorado, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute at least 50 grams of actual methamphetamine and at least 500 grams of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine. Sentencing for Wright has been scheduled for October 10, 2022, at the U.S. Courthouse in Davenport, Iowa.

During three days of trial, beginning on June 13, the government presented evidence establishing that beginning in June 2016, Wright conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine in Illinois. The case began when the Drug Enforcement Administration seized approximately 58 grams of 90+% pure methamphetamine from Wright’s coconspirator’s residence in Illinois. Agents worked up the chain of distribution to identify the source of the methamphetamine as Wright.

After the guilty verdict, Wright was taken into the custody of the United States Marshal’s Service. At sentencing, she faces statutory penalties of ten years to life imprisonment.

The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Quad City Metropolitan Enforcement Group (QCMEG); Rock Island County Sheriff’s Department; Scott County Sheriff’s Department; and Colorado Springs Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alyssa Raya and Jennifer Mathew represented the government at trial.  

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Jennifer Hansen to two years in prison for filing false tax returns for the years 2016, 2017, and 2018.  She had pleaded guilty on March 22, 2022.

According to court documents, Hansen, a registered nurse, was employed by a medical examination company to evaluate individuals who were seeking life insurance policies.  In that role, Hansen earned hundreds of thousands of dollars in income during the years 2016, 2017, and 2018, all of which she intentionally omitted from her federal income tax returns.  Through her false returns, Hansen caused a tax loss to the United States of $257,830.44.  The Court ordered her to make full restitution to the Internal Revenue Service in that amount.

During the investigation into Hansen’s tax crimes, investigators also learned that a substantial portion of Hansen’s unreported income was illegitimately earned.  In that regard, Hansen generated income by submitting false records to her employer claiming that she had examined a real patient, when, in fact, she had not.  The Court ordered Hansen to pay over $1,000,000 in restitution to her former employer.

“For three years, Ms. Hansen cheated her employer, insurance policy holders, and the American people to collect hundreds of thousands of dollars for herself,” said Brian Payne, special agent in charge of IRS-CI’s Tampa Field Office. “Cheaters don’t win, and Ms. Hansen must now face consequences for her actions.”

This case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael V. Leeman.