Month: July 2022

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – Joseph Tamjong, 50, of Lanham, Maryland, was arrested today after being charged in federal court with defrauding the D.C. Medicaid program out of hundreds of thousands of dollars. 

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division, Maureen R. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General for the region that includes Washington, D.C., and Daniel W. Lucas, Inspector General for the District of Columbia.

            Tamjong was charged in a criminal complaint with health care fraud and health care false statements. He is to make his initial appearance later today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

            According to charging documents, between approximately December 2014 and the present, Tamjong has been employed as personal care aide and/or a participant-directed worker to provide personal care aide services to District of Columbia residents who need assistance performing activities of daily living, such as getting in and out of bed, bathing, dressing, and eating. Tamjong is alleged to have submitted false timesheets claiming that he provided such services when in fact he did not, including when he was traveling outside the United States on eight different trips. Charging documents allege that between December 2014 and February 2022, Medicaid issued payments totaling approximately $733,405 for personal care aide services that Tamjong purportedly provided as a personal care aide or participant-directed worker.

            A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

            Today’s arrest marks a continued effort by the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General, the District of Columbia’s Office of the Inspector General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office to investigate and prosecute individuals who defraud the D.C. Medicaid program.  Since August 2018, 11 former personal care aides have pleaded guilty to defrauding Medicaid in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Six of those aides were sentenced to 13 months in prison; a seventh was sentenced to serve 15 months. An eleventh, Susan Tingwei—a licensed attorney—is scheduled to be sentenced on July 11, 2022.

            The government urges the public to provide tips and assistance to stop health care fraud. If you have information about individuals committing health care fraud, please call the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General hotline at (800) HHS‑TIPS [(800) 447-8477] or the D.C. Office of the Inspector General at (800) 724-TIPS [(800) 274-8477].

            This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kondi Kleinman, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Michon Tart.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — Norris L. Bond, 42, of Columbia, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute cocaine and crack cocaine and possessing a firearm during and in relation to drug trafficking. 

Evidence presented to the Court showed that in July, 2019, Richland County Sheriff’s Department made a traffic stop on an Audi driven by Bond. In a subsequent search of the Audi, law enforcement found bags of suspected cocaine and crack cocaine, and a loaded 9mm pistol. Law enforcement arrested Bond and transported him to the detention center. While Bond was enroute, law enforcement noticed him moving around in the backseat of the patrol car. When Bond was removed from the patrol car, law enforcement discovered a torn bag of suspected cocaine where Bond had been sitting.  The suspected cocaine and crack cocaine lab tested as approximately 63 grams of cocaine and 30 grams of crack cocaine.

Further investigation revealed Bond had been engaged in a multi-year conspiracy to sell cocaine and crack cocaine in the Columbia area. Bond’s role in that conspiracy was as a source of supply to others. In a three-year period, Bond was accountable for more than 10 kilograms of cocaine and more than 750 grams of crack cocaine. 

United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis sentenced Bond to 144 months imprisonment, to be followed by a 5-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 Richland County Sheriff’s Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Flynn prosecuted the case.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

          GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN —U.S. Attorney Mark Totten announced today that Eugene Jonas Hicks, age 38, of Lansing, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment after previously pleading guilty to possessing with the intent to distribute controlled substances and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.  In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Janet T. Neff imposed a 4-year term of supervised release, which will begin when Hicks is released from prison.  Hicks was previously convicted of multiple prior felonies, including home invasion and aggravated stalking.

          On May 12, 2021, law enforcement officers in Lansing attempted a traffic stop of a vehicle driven by Hicks in Lansing.  A high-speed vehicle pursuit followed.  During the pursuit, Hicks threw a loaded Taurus .357 revolver from the vehicle.  Hicks also threw plastic bags containing cocaine, cocaine base, and methamphetamine from the sunroof.  These items could have been accessible to the public had they not been recovered by law enforcement.  Hicks disregarded stop signs and red lights, driving into oncoming traffic.  The pursuit ultimately ended when Hicks crashed his vehicle in traffic, resulting in injuries to a passenger.  Hicks then attempted to flee on foot but was apprehended by authorities. 

          U.S. Attorney Totten said, “Drugs and guns are a toxic mix, which is only made worse when they are possessed by convicted felons and thrown out of vehicles onto our streets.  Our office will continue to work together with all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.”

          This case resulted from a coordinated investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Lansing Police Department, Lansing’s Violent Crime Initiative Unit, and the Michigan State Police.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren F. Biksacky.

          This case is being 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.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

Justin Haubrich, 46, from Milford, pled guilty June 28, 2022, in federal court in Sioux City, to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

At the plea hearing, Haubrich admitted that from May 2018 through January 2019, he was involved in a conspiracy that distributed at least five pounds of methamphetamine.  Haubrich was supplied methamphetamine from sources in Denison and Council Bluffs, Iowa for further distribution in Northwest Iowa.  During a traffic stop in January 2019, Haubrich was found in possession of a .45 caliber handgun and was known to keep and store guns during his drug trafficking activities.  

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Haubrich remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Haubrich faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and was investigated by Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office, the Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office, the Okoboji, Iowa Police Department, and the Iowa DCI Laboratory.   

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 21-4097. 

Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

FLORENCE, SOUTH CAROLINA — A federal grand jury in Florence returned a 10-count indictment alleging charges related to wildlife trafficking and money laundering against five individuals:

• Bhagavan Mahamayavi Antle, a/k/a Kevin Antle, a/k/a Doc Antle, 62, of Myrtle Beach;
• Andrew Jon Sawyer a/k/a Omar Sawyer, 52, of Myrtle Beach;
• Meredith Bybee, a/k/a Moksha Bybee, 51, of Myrtle Beach;
• Charles Sammut, 61, of Salinas, California; and
• Jason Clay, 42, of Franklin, Texas

According to the indictment and other court records, Antle is the owner and operator of The Institute for Greatly Endangered and Rare Species (T.I.G.E.R.S), also known as the Myrtle Beach Safari. The Myrtle Beach Safari is a 50-acre wildlife tropical preserve in Myrtle Beach. Sawyer and Bybee are Antle’s employees and business associates.

Sammut is the owner and operator of Vision Quest Ranch, a for-profit corporation that housed captive exotic species and sold tours and safari experiences to guests. Clay is the owner and operator of the Franklin Drive Thru Safari, a for-profit corporation that housed captive exotic species and sold tours and safari experiences to guests.

The indictment alleges that Antle, at various times along with Bybee, Sammut, and Clay, illegally trafficked wildlife in violation of federal law, including the Lacey Act and the Endangered Species Act, and made false records regarding that wildlife. The animals involved included lemurs, cheetahs, and a chimpanzee.

The indictment and a previously-filed federal complaint in the case also allege that over the last several months, Antle and Sawyer laundered more than $500,000 in cash they believed to be the proceeds of an operation to smuggle illegal immigrants across the Mexican border into the United States. The filings allege that Antle had used bulk cash receipts to purchase animals for which he could not use checks, and that Antle planned to conceal the cash he received by inflating tourist numbers at the Myrtle Beach Safari.

Antle and Sawyer each face a maximum of 20 years in federal prison for the charges related to money laundering, and up to five years in federal prison for the charges related to wildlife trafficking. Bybee, Sammut, and Clay each face up to five years in federal prison for the charges related to the wildlife trafficking. Antle and Sawyer were previously granted a bond by a federal magistrate judge as a result of the charges in the federal complaint, and Bybee, Sammut, and Clay are pending arraignment.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The prosecutors on the case are Assistant U.S. Attorneys Derek A. Shoemake and Amy Bower, with the District of South Carolina, and DOJ Senior Trial Attorney Patrick M. Duggan with DOJ’s Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section

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

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antle_indictment.pdf