Month: June 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA — Travis Stefenon Dequan Lawrence, 29, of Charleston, was sentenced to seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Evidence presented to the Court showed that Lawrence was a felon and self-professed member of a dangerous street gang. When he was arrested, he was in possession of a stolen pistol with a magazine holding 17 rounds of hollow point ammunition. His record shows that he has been involved in criminal activity since he was 14 years old.

United States District Judge David C. Norton sentenced Lawrence to 84 months imprisonment, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision.  There is no parole in the federal system.

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.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Charleston Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Kittrell prosecuted the case in federal court in coordination with Assistant Solicitor Stephanie Linder of the Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

A federal court ordered a Colchester, Vermont, compounding pharmacy to stop distributing adulterated and misbranded drugs in violation of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA), the Justice Department announced.

In a complaint filed May 20, the United States alleged that Edge Pharm Inc., and its owners and operators Marc Chatoff and Kurt Radke, violated the FDCA by manufacturing and distributing adulterated and misbranded drugs, by causing drugs to become adulterated and misbranded while held for sale, and by introducing new unapproved drugs into interstate commerce. According to the complaint, the defendants manufactured injectable drugs intended to be sterile under conditions that fell short of the minimum requirements to ensure sterility. The complaint further alleged that U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspections of the Edge facility between 2014 and 2021 revealed record-keeping violations, labelling inadequacies, improper airflow, structural disrepair and the presence in cleanroom suites of mold species that can cause diseases in humans which may be deadly to immunocompromised patients.  

“Compounding pharmacies must ensure that their products are safe,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “The department will continue to work closely with the FDA to ensure that drugs are compounded in compliance with the law.”

“Edge Pharma LLC has put patients’ lives at risk by repeatedly producing drugs under insanitary conditions and failing to follow good manufacturing practice requirements,” said Director Donald Ashley of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) Office of Compliance. “While compounded drugs are not FDA-approved, all drug firms must prioritize patient safety, which Edge Pharma has been unable to do. This consent decree ensures that Edge Pharma will be held accountable, and FDA will continue to take all necessary steps within our regulatory authority to protect the health of the American public.”

The defendants agreed to settle the suit and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction. The consent decree requires, among other things, that the defendants stop manufacturing and distributing adulterated drugs until they take specific remedial measures and demonstrate to the FDA that they will comply with federal law. Judge Chief Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford of the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont entered the order against the defendants.  

The government was represented by Trial Attorney David G. Crockett of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, with the assistance of Claudia Zuckerman of the FDA’s Office of Chief Counsel. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Vermont provided valuable assistance.

Additional information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts may be found at http://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

United States Attorney Ronald C. Gathe, Jr. announced that U.S. District Judge Brian A. Jackson sentenced Darrell Dewayne Waller, age 47, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to 74 months in federal prison following his convictions for possession with the intent to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, fentanyl, MDMA, and marijuana, and possession of a firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  The Court further sentenced Waller to serve three years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment and ordered that the firearms involved be forfeited.

According to admissions made as part of his guilty plea, on April 8, 2020, law enforcement executed a search warrant for Waller’s residence and his vehicle. The searches of the residence and the vehicle yielded a Bersa, Model 380 ACP, .380 caliber, semi-automatic pistol, a Titan, Model 25 ACP, .25 caliber semi-automatic pistol, a Smith & Wesson, Model (TBD), .32 long caliber revolver, and a Beretta USA Corp, Model 92G, 9mm caliber, semi-automatic pistol as well as cocaine base, fentanyl, cocaine, MDMA, and marijuana,

This matter was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office.   It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeremy S. Johnson. 

Source: United States Department of Justice News

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, announced today that Tyrone Atcitty Nez was charged by criminal complaint with second degree murder in Indian Country. Nez, 33, of Sanostee, New Mexico, and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, made an initial appearance in federal court today and will remain in custody pending a preliminary and detention hearing scheduled for June 15.

According to the complaint, on June 8, Nez allegedly fatally assaulted a man, identified as John Doe, in the home where Nez resides near Sanostee on the Navajo Nation. Nez allegedly punched John Doe in the face, rendering John Doe unconscious. Nez then allegedly stomped the victim in the face several times.

Neighbors called 911. Emergency Medical Services were unable to revive John Doe, and Navajo Police arrested Nez.

A complaint is only an allegation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Nez faces up to life in prison.

The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Navajo Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Brittany DuChaussee is prosecuting the case.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

Mexican Man Sentenced to Prison for Illegally Reentering the United States After Being Twice Deported