Month: June 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

CHICAGO — A man who illegally possessed a semi-automatic handgun in Evanston, Ill., and tried to flee from police has been sentenced to nearly eight years in federal prison.

DARIUS MORALES illegally possessed the firearm on May 8, 2019.  Evanston Police responded to gun shots fired in an alley and saw a silver Jeep Commander pull out and speed away.  The Jeep led police on a high-speed chase through downtown Evanston until it crashed into a fence in the backyard of a residence.  Morales, who was a passenger in the Jeep, left the gun on the fence and tried to run off.  He was arrested a few blocks away.

A federal jury last year convicted Morales, 32, of Evanston, of illegally possessing the firearm.  Morales had previously been convicted of multiple felonies and was prohibited by federal law from possessing a firearm.

Judge Amy J. St. Eve of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, sitting by designation in U.S. District Court in Chicago, on Friday imposed a 94-month prison sentence.  Judge St. Eve found that Morales was the individual who fired the gun in the alley.

The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Robert J. Bell, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.  Substantial assistance was provided by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Evanston Police Department; and Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.  The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeannice Appenteng and Charles W. Mulaney.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Crystal Dawn Roth, of Walkersville, West Virginia, was sentenced today to 100 months of incarceration for a firearms charge, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.

Roth, 39, pleaded guilty today to one count of “Unlawful Possession of a Firearm.” Roth, a person prohibited from having firearms because of prior convictions, admitted to having a revolver in March 2021 in Braxton County.

Roth was also ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher L. Bauer prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Braxton County Sheriff’s Office investigated.

Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Ryan Ramney, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced today to five years of probation for a drug charge, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.

Ramney, 38, pleaded guilty in March 2022 to one count of “Possession with Intent to Distribute Cocaine Hydrochloride.” Ramney admitted to having cocaine hydrochloride, also known as “coke,” in July 2021 in Berkeley County.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Eleanor F. Hurney prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, and the Department of Homeland Security investigated.

U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

MARTINSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA –Mary Margaret Renfro, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was sentenced today to five years of probation for her role in a drug conspiracy that spanned several states, United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced.

Renfro, 39, pleaded guilty in January 2021 to one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute 100 Grams or More of Heroin and 40 Grams or More of Fentanyl” and one count of “Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute and to Distribute 28 Grams or More of Cocaine Base.”  Renfro worked with others to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin and 40 grams or more of fentanyl, a s well as 28 grams or more of cocaine base from June 2019 to December 2019 in Berkeley and Jefferson Counties and elsewhere.

This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney C. Lydia Lehman, also with the Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, prosecuted the case on behalf of the government. The FBI; Homeland Security Investigations; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; and the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force, a HIDTA-funded initiative, investigated. The Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office assisted.

U.S. District Judge Gina M. Groh presided.

Find the related press release here: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndwv/pr/25-charged-six-state-drug-conspiracy-involving-heroin-fentanyl-cocaine

Source: United States Department of Justice News

DETROIT – A former Detroit Police Department officer was sentenced to prison today for taking $3,200 in cash bribes over an almost two-year period, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced.

Ison was joined in the announcement by James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Detroit Division.

During a hearing today before U.S. District Court Judge George Caram Steeh, Alonzo Jones, 55, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced to 15 months in prison and two years of supervised release based on his plea of guilty to accepting bribes. Jones, an officer with the Detroit Police Department for over 30 years, corruptly accepted cash bribes on five separate occasions, totaling $3,200, with the intent to be influenced and rewarded in connection with his duties overseeing and running the Detroit Police Vehicle Auction. The last bribe he took was right before he retired from DPD in May 2021.

United States Attorney Ison said, “Every new police officer takes an oath to uphold our laws and act with integrity.   This officer broke that oath and his crimes are an affront to the citizens of Detroit and the honest officers of the Detroit Police Department who put their lives on the line to protect those citizens.  This sentence shows our office’s commitment to aggressively pursuing police officers who use their trusted positions of authority to enrich themselves.” 

“The public expects law enforcement officers to do their work with honesty and integrity. Instead, Mr. Jones exploited his official position, accepting bribes in exchange for favors related to the Detroit Vehicle Auction. Today, he was held accountable for his criminal conduct,” said James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Detroit Division. “Thank you to Chief James White for his cooperation during this investigation and to the men and women of the Detroit Police Department who serve with honor day in and day out. And thank you to the members of the Detroit Area Corruption Task Force for their continued work on Operation Northern Hook.”

Jones was charged as part of the government’s investigation known as “Operation Northern Hook.” Northern Hook is an investigation of corruption within the government and the Police Department of the City of Detroit relating to the towing industry and other matters.

The investigation of this case was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Frances Lee Carlson.

The Detroit Area Corruption Task Force member agencies include the FBI, State of Michigan Attorney General’s Office, Michigan State Police, Detroit Police Department, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol-Office of Professional Responsibility, Internal Revenue Service, and U.S. Department of Homeland Security.