Month: July 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

On July 8, after a three-week trial, a federal jury convicted three former correctional officers at the Hawaii Community Correctional Center — Jason Tagaloa, 31, Craig Pinkney, 38, and Jonathan Taum, 50 — for assaulting an inmate in violation of his civil rights and for obstructing justice in attempting to cover up the violation. A fourth officer, Jordan DeMattos, previously pleaded guilty for his role in the assault and cover up, and testified for the government at trial. After the jury’s verdict, Judge Leslie Kobayashi ordered the U.S. Marshals to take the defendants into custody pending their sentencing hearings.

The evidence at trial established that the defendants assaulted the inmate in the prison’s recreation yard. Over the course of two minutes, the defendants punched and kicked the inmate in the head and body while he was lying face-down in a pool of his own blood. The inmate suffered a broken nose, jaw and eye socket. After the beating, the defendants wrote false reports in which they omitted almost all of the force they had used. When the prison opened an investigation, the defendants met to get their stories straight and brainstorm false excuses they would give for having used force. Ultimately, the Hawaii Department of Public Safety fired all four officers.

“These defendants abused the trust given to them as law enforcement officers when they violently assaulted an inmate and lied to cover it up,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “The Justice Department will prosecute corrections officials who violently assault inmates inside our jails and prisons, and abuse their official positions to cover-up their crimes. We are committed to using our civil rights laws to ensure that the rights of all individuals, including those in custody, are fully protected.”

“This prosecution and verdict affirm our office’s commitment to ensuring every person’s civil rights are protected under the law,” said U.S. Attorney Clare E. Connors for the District of Hawaii. “We will continue to enforce those rights the Constitution and other federal laws provide.”

“The FBI will always investigate when a person’s civil rights are violated,” said Special Agent in Charge Steven Merrill of the FBI Honolulu Field Office. “As correctional officers, they were held to upholding the standards of law enforcement officers within the state prisons and they did not do so in this case. The FBI will vigorously pursue justice for those whose civil rights were violated.”

The maximum penalties for the charged crimes are 10 years of imprisonment for the deprivation-of-rights offense, 20 years of imprisonment for the false report offenses and five years of imprisonment for the conspiracy offense.

The FBI conducted the investigation. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Craig Nolan of the District of Hawaii, and Special Litigation Counsel Christopher J. Perras and Trial Attorney Thomas Johnson of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Acting United States Attorney Nicholas Vassallo announced today that JOHN ELDON RIMMASCH, 47, of Cheyenne, Wyoming, and WASATCH RAILROAD CONTRACTORS (“WASATCH”), incorporated in Wyoming in 2005, appeared before Federal District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson on July 5, 2022, for sentencing after a federal jury found them guilty on five counts of wire fraud and one count of knowing endangerment for knowingly exposing employees to asbestos and placing them in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury. 

Headquartered in Cheyenne, Wyoming, Wasatch also operated a facility in Shoshoni, Wyoming. The company performed repair and restoration on freight cars and its Wasatch Railroad Contractors division purported to specialize in restoring historic railroad equipment. John Eldon Rimmasch is the founder and owner of Wasatch and served as its Chief Executive Officer. 

This case arose after Wasatch and its owner, Rimmasch, entered a contract to restore a historic railcar owned by the National Park Service. Wasatch failed to complete the restoration, and in the process, Rimmasch knowingly placed 30 of his employees in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury by exposing them to asbestos without proper safety measures. Through directives of its owner, Rimmasch, Wasatch invoiced the National Park Service certifying that it performed the asbestos abatement pursuant to the contract, knowing full well it had not. 

At the sentencing hearing, Judge Johnson found that John Rimmasch attempted to obstruct justice by presenting a fraudulent exhibit at the jury trial and abused his position of trust during the commission of the crimes.  Rimmasch was sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 30 months and three years of supervised release on each count to run concurrently. Rimmasch was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $7,428 and a special assessment of $600. Wasatch Railroad Contractors, now defunct, was ordered to pay a special assessment of  $2,400.00.

“Our office will vigorously prosecute those who commit environmental crimes or engage in fraud against the government,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Vassallo. “We appreciate the excellent investigative work performed in this case by the United States Department of the Interior, Office of the Inspector General and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.”

“The Department of the Interior Office of Inspector General will continue to aggressively root out attempts to defraud the U.S. government and taxpayers,” said Jamie DePaepe, Special Agent in Charge, Department of the Interior, Office of Inspector General’s Western Region.  “We hope today’s sentencing will serve as a deterrent to others contemplating stealing federal funds for their own personal gain, as well as to those who would knowingly risk the lives and health of others in furtherance of their fraudulent scheme.”

The crimes were investigated by the United States Department of the Interior, Office of the Inspector General, and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.  Assistant United States Attorney Stephanie I. Sprecher and Special Assistant United States Attorney Richard Baird prosecuted the case.

Case N0. 21-cr-00138-ABJ

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the convictions last week of MIRCEA CONSTANTINESCU, NIKOLAOS LIMBERATOS, and ALEXANDRU RADULESCU for their participation in an international conspiracy to commit a variety of offenses, including access device fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, and aggravated identity theft, following a seven-day trial before the Honorable Sidney H. Stein.

United States Attorney Damian Williams said: “As the jury recognized, these defendants participated in a prolific ATM skimming and money laundering ring that spanned years and continents.  They caused staggering losses by, among other things, stealing account numbers and personal identification numbers of their victims using sophisticated technology.  Because of yesterday’s verdict, they will no longer be able to ‘cash out’ on others’ identities.”

As proven at trial:

MIRCEA CONSTANTINESCU, NIKOLAOS LIMBERATOS, and ALEXANDRU RADULESCU were members of an international “ATM skimming” and money laundering organization (the “Skimming Organization”).  From approximately 2014 to 2019, the Skimming Organization made millions of dollars by installing sophisticated machinery on ATMs and point-of-sale machines, capturing unsuspecting bank customers’ card numbers and PINs, reencoding that information on counterfeit cards, and then “cashing out” those cards to withdraw as much money as they could.

The Skimming Organization sent crews of “install” and “cash out” workers to travel throughout the country, carrying out numerous skimming operations at various banks and on point-of-sale machines.  The operations often lasted a period of days.  After cashing out, the teams would take a cut of the money earned and provide the rest to the Skimming Organization’s leaders. 

LIMBERATOS and RADULESCU were leaders of the Skimming Organization, who ran teams of “install” and “cash out” workers, oversaw the manufacture and repair of skimming devices, cased ideal locations, organized skimming jobs, and made millions of dollars as a result.  LIMBERATOS also participated in laundering the proceeds of the skimming jobs, including through a restaurant business he owned. CONSTANTINESCU helped to send and receive packages containing skimming and skimming-related equipment, worked with an engineer who fashioned skimming devices, and laundered money for the Skimming Organization from the United States to Romania.

CONSTANTINESCU, LIMBERATOS, and RADULESCU were among 33 defendants charged in connection with this case.

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CONSTANTINESCU, 48, of Queens, New York, was convicted of one count of conspiring to commit access device fraud, one count of conspiring to commit wire and bank fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft, and one count of conspiring to commit money laundering.  Those counts carry a maximum potential sentence of 59 years and six months in prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years of in prison.

LIMBERATOS, 56, of Deer Park, New York, was convicted of one count of aggravated identity theft. Shortly before trial, LIMBERATOS pled guilty to one count of conspiring to commit access device fraud, one count of conspiring to commit wire and bank fraud, and one count of conspiring to commit money laundering.  Those counts together carry a maximum potential sentence of 59 years and six months of in prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison.

RADULESCU, 36, of Romania, was convicted of one count of aggravated identity theft. Shortly before trial, RADULESCU pled guilty to one count of conspiring to commit access device fraud, one count of conspiring to commit wire and bank fraud, and one count of access device fraud.  Those counts together carry a maximum potential sentence of 54 years and six months in prison, and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison.

The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judge.

All three defendants are scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Stein on October 13, 2022, at 2:30 p.m. (CONSTANTINESCU), 3:00 p.m. (LIMBERATOS), and 3:30 p.m. (RADULESCU).

This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elizabeth Hanft, Samuel P. Rothschild, Maggie Lynaugh, and Robert B. Sobelman are in charge of the prosecution. 

Source: United States Department of Justice News

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – On July 7, 2022, United States District Judge Susie Morgan sentenced ALTON COOKS to 115 months in the Bureau of Prisons for being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of the Federal Gun Control Act, announced U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans.

COOKS was charged on October 23, 2020 in a one-count indictment with possessing a Taurus Model PT111 Pro, nine-millimeter pistol while being a convicted felon.  COOKS will serve 115 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release and a $100 mandatory special assessment fee. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is 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.

U. S. Attorney Duane A. Evans praised the work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.  The prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Melissa Bücher.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Greenbelt, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis sentenced Darick Knighton, age 44, of Alexandria, Virginia, to five years in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance and distribution of a controlled substance.   The sentence was imposed on July 7, 2022.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Washington Division; Acting Postal Inspector in Charge Tira Hayward of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service – Washington Division; Chief Malik Aziz of the Prince George’s County Police Department; and Chief Marcus Jones of the Montgomery County Police Department.

According to his guilty plea, from December 2018 to January 2020, Knighton, and others participated in a conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin. From the spring of 2018 to December 2018, Knighton sold more than 100 grams of heroin to a confidential informant in Maryland.  For example, on December 13, 2018, Knighton sold 97.32 grams of heroin with trace amounts of caffeine and fentanyl to a confidential informant in exchange for $7,000.  Knighton also sold cocaine.  Beginning on April 4, 2019, law enforcement officers intercepted Knighton’s phone calls and were able to identify several of Knighton’s narcotics customers, including a customer to whom Knighton sold between 50 and 100 grams of cocaine.

As detailed in his plea agreement, Knighton had a longstanding relationship with his primary source of supply for heroin.  As a result, the source of supply provided Knighton with heroin on consignment, which Knighton then resold in smaller quantities to his own customer base.  Knighton also had other suppliers, including an individual based in Baltimore, Maryland.  Knighton admitted that he knew the drug trafficking organization was extensive and that his drug supplier obtained narcotics from at least one source located outside of the Washington, D.C. area.  On May 1, 2019, following a conversation between co-defendant Dwight Andrew Douse and the source of supply, the source of supply called Knighton to let him know that he could obtain 100 grams of heroin from his source of supply and that the drugs could be cut such that Knighton would have 125 grams of product to sell to his customers.  Knighton never directly dealt with Douse or with co-defendant Ana Avalos.  Knighton was also aware that his source of supply had additional narcotics customers in addition to Knighton.

Four co-defendants have pleaded guilty in this case, including Dwight Andrew Douse, age 45, of Newburgh, New York; and Ana Avalos, age 35, of Phelan, California.  Ana Avalos was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison in July 2021.  Douse and two other co-defendants who pleaded guilty are scheduled to be sentenced in the coming months.  One co-defendant is scheduled for trial in April 2023, and the final co-defendant is a fugitive.

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

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA, USPIS, the Prince George’s County Police Department, and the Montgomery County Police Department for their work in the investigation and thanked the Metropolitan Police Department, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the Virginia State Police, and the Fairfax County Police Department for their assistance.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy F. Hagan and Joel Crespo, who prosecuted the case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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