Month: June 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – A Huntington man pleaded guilty today to possession with intent to distribute heroin and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on November 10, 2021, law enforcement officers observed multiple suspected hand-to-hand drug transactions at a Fifth Avenue residence in Huntington involving an individual later identified as Curtis Leroy Hayes, Jr., 47. When Hayes left the residence in a vehicle, officers initiated a traffic stop of the vehicle. Hayes was arrested, and officers found approximately 6.4 grams of suspected heroin on his person. Hayes admitted to officers that he had been selling heroin for several months. Officers executed a search warrant at Hayes’ residence, where they recovered a loaded Bryco Arms, Jennings Model Nine 9mm pistol in his bedroom.

Federal law prohibits a person with a prior felony conviction from possessing a firearm or ammunition. Hayes knew he was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of his convictions for first-degree murder and second-degree murder in Cabell County Circuit Court on December 19, 1995, and for possession of a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime in United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia on March 27, 1995.

Hayes is scheduled to be sentenced on September 19, 2022, and faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $1.25 million fine.

United States Attorney Will Thompson made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Huntington Violent Crime and Drug Task Force and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF).

United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers presided over the hearing. Assistant United States Attorney Ryan A. Keefe is prosecuting 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.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. Related court documents and information can be found on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:21-cr-251.

 

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — A federal grand jury in Columbia returned a five-count indictment against Erick Jonathan Stewart, 27, of Columbia, for conspiring to distribute and possessing with intent to distribute various drugs, possessing of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

The indictment alleges that Stewart conspired with others to distribute and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine, and tramadol. The indictment further alleges that Stewart possessed a firearm after having previously been convicted of a prior felony, possessed a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possessed a quantity of marijuana, fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine, and tramadol with the intent to distribute on May 5, 2021. Lastly, the indictment alleges that Stewart possessed a firearm after having previously been convicted of a prior felony on June 20, 2021.

Stewart faces a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine and is currently detained.

This case was 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 case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Richland County Sheriff’s Department, and City of Columbia Police Department. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lamar J. Fyall is prosecuting the case. 

U.S. Attorney Corey F. Ellis stated that all charges in the indictment are merely accusations and that defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — A federal grand jury in Columbia returned a four-count indictment against Kenneth Archie, 41, of Columbia, for two counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possessing marijuana with the intent to distribute.

The indictment alleges that Archie possessed a firearm after having previously been convicted of a prior felony on November 6, 2020. The indictment further alleges that Archie possessed a firearm after having previously been convicted of a prior felony, possessed a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possessed a quantity of marijuana with the intent to distribute on June 14, 2021.

Archie faces a maximum penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine and is currently detained.

This case was 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 case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Richland County Sheriff’s Department, and City of Columbia Police Department. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lamar J. Fyall is prosecuting the case. 

U.S. Attorney Corey F. Ellis stated that all charges in the indictment are merely accusations and that defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

United States Attorney Ronald C. Gathe, Jr. announced that U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson sentenced Shawn Phillips, age 44, of Baton Rouge, to 33 months in federal prison following his conviction for wire fraud, to run consecutively to his pending state charges.  The Court further sentenced Phillips to three years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment and ordered him to pay restitution in the amount of $50,718.

According to admissions made as part of his guilty plea, Phillips befriended the victim, then took advantage of that friendship to steal over $50,718 over a 16-month period, January of 2020 to May of 2021.  Phillips convinced the victim to loan him the money by claiming he needed to borrow money until his large inheritance came in.  Yet, unbeknownst to the victim, at no point was Phillips expecting any inheritance.

Even when Phillips left Baton Rouge and moved to Georgia, he continued his scheme, convincing the victim to send 43 wire transfers from Baton Rouge to Georgia to fund his lifestyle there.  Throughout the course of the scheme, Phillips continued his fraudulent assertion that he was waiting on an inheritance, even at points claiming to need additional money from the victim to get the ‘inheritance’ out of the court system.

This matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Louisiana Bureau of Investigation and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jessica M.P. Thornhill, who also serves as the Elder Justice Coordinator for the Middle District of Louisiana. 

The Department of Justice’s Elder Justice Initiative aims to combat elder financial exploitation by expanding efforts to investigate and prosecute financial scams that target seniors; educate older adults on how to identify scams and avoid becoming victims of financial fraud; and promote greater coordination with law enforcement partners. For more information, please visit: https://www.justice.gov/elderjustice.  If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has been a victim of financial fraud, help is available at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311).