Month: September 2022

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Security News: Byram Man Sentenced to over Nine Years in Prison for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Jackson, Miss. – A Byram man was sentenced to 115 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, announced U.S. Attorney Darren LaMarca and Special Agent in Charge Jermicha Fomby of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Dave Venard Thompson, 41, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Jackson.  

The case is the result of an extensive investigation targeting illegal narcotics distribution in central Mississippi that involved the distribution of methamphetamine, heroin, marijuana and cocaine.  On March 9, 2018, the FBI learned that two men from California driving a black Dodge Ram truck were in the tri-county area of Hinds, Madison and Rankin Counties of Central Mississippi to pick up narcotics.  Agents placed the truck under surveillance and saw an occupant of the truck deliver a package to the Post Office in Jackson. On March 12, 2018, local law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of the truck and found $19,770 in cash hidden in the truck.  The postal package that was seized by the Postal Inspector contained almost 1 kilogram of heroin and 1 kilogram of fentanyl.     

Thompson was indicted by a federal grand jury and subsequently pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.   

The case is the result of an extensive investigation, dubbed “Fire and Ice,” which began as an operation targeting illegal drug trafficking in the Hattiesburg, Mississippi area. “Fire and Ice” 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.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the Madison County Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Keesha Middleton.

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Security News: Former prisoner transport officer convicted of civil rights offense for abusing detainees in his care

Source: United States Department of Justice News

WASHINGTON – Former prisoner transport officer Anthony Buntyn, 55, was convicted of a felony civil rights offense for abusing detainees in his care.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Buntyn was a prisoner transport officer employed by Prisoner Transportation Services of America (PTS), a company hired by local jails and prisons throughout the country to transport people who had been arrested pursuant to out-of-state warrants and needed to be transported back to the states that had issued the warrants. Buntyn was the supervising officer on a March 2017 PTS transport that stopped in New Mexico during a cross-country trip. 

“Prisoner transport officers, even those employed by private companies, must abide by our civil rights laws and protect the constitutional rights of people in their custody,” said Assistant Attorney General Clarke. “The Justice Department will continue to vigorously enforce our nation’s laws to ensure that the officers who break the law — including those who are driving the nation’s backroads in transport vans and may therefore wrongly believe they can act with impunity — are held accountable.”

“Detainees are entitled to basic human dignity,” said U.S. Attorney Uballez. “Those who are responsible for their detention, from transport personnel to law enforcement and corrections officers, have the same duty to protect the rights and safety of their charges. Any abuse of detainees or failure to provide basic necessities is a violation of that trust and a violation of the law, and it will be roundly prosecuted.”

Former PTS Agent Buntyn was convicted of depriving detainees on the transport of their constitutional right to be free from an officer’s deliberate indifference to serious health and safety risks to the detainees. Evidence at trial established that the defendant knowingly created, and otherwise subjected the detainees to, dangerous, painful, and unhealthy conditions on the transport van. Specifically, evidence at trial showed that the defendant would retaliate against detainees who complained, by handcuffing the detainees behind their backs and forcing them to remain for hours in a small segregation cage inside the van; by depriving detainees of meals and access to water while they remained in the cage; by cranking up the heat in the already-hot van in retaliation for detainees complaining that, as they passed through the southwestern desert, they were in danger of overheating; and by failing to provide the detainees with required restroom breaks, until the detainees were left with no choice but to urinate in empty bottles or on the floor.

Buntyn was acquitted of a use of force and an obstruction of justice charge.

A date for the sentencing hearing has not yet been announced.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez of the District of New Mexico made the announcement.

This case was investigated by the FBI Kansas City Field Office and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S.  Attorney Kimberly A. Brawley of the District of New Mexico and Trial Attorney Laura Gilson of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, with assistance from Special Litigation Counsel Samantha Trepel.

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Security News: Two Brooklyn Men Charged With Armed Robbery at Church

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Defendants Allegedly Stole Jewelry at Gunpoint from Clergy Members During Live-Streamed Church Service

Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, an indictment was unsealed charging Juwan Anderson and Say-Quan Pollack for their roles in an armed robbery at a church in Brooklyn (the “Church”) on July 24, 2022.  The defendants were arrested today and will be arraigned this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Ramon E. Reyes, Jr.  A third defendant remains at large.

Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, John B. DeVito, Special Agent-in-Charge, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, New York Division (ATF), and Keechant L. Sewell, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the arrests and charges.

“As alleged, the defendants brought guns into a place of worship, stealing from two members of the clergy, and terrifying the congregation in the process,” stated United States Attorney Peace.  “I commend the Special Agents and Detectives for their outstanding efforts in identifying the perpetrators who committed a crime that shocks the conscience for its brazenness. This Office will always work with our law enforcement partners to protect our houses of worship, prosecute those who engage in gun violence and and ensure the safety of all members of our community.”

“Armed robbery is an intolerable crime, but to commit such an act during a religious service is incomprehensible,” stated ATF Special Agent-in-Charge DeVito.  “The men and woman of ATF stand side by side with all of our partners to identify, investigate and apprehend those that commit such brazen acts of violence within our communities.  These arrests are due to the excellent investigative work by ATF/NYPD’s Strategic Pattern Armed Robbery Technical Apprehension (SPARTA) Group. I would like to thank the United States Attorney’s Office for their work in prosecuting this case.”

“The indictment unsealed today affirms the NYPD’s unwavering commitment to working collaboratively, across several law enforcement agencies, to focus on those few individuals charged with wreaking violence in our city,” said Police Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell. “I commend the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, the New York Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, and all of our NYPD officers and detectives who have investigated this important case and removed these defendants from our streets,” stated NYPD Commissioner Sewell.

As alleged in the indictment and court filings, Anderson, Pollack and a co-conspirator—masked and clad all in black—entered the Church brandishing firearms, while parishioners attended Church services in person and via a live-stream.  The lead pastor (“Individual 1” in the Indictment) dove to the floor, while his wife (“Individual 2” in the Indictment) shielded their infant daughter who was sitting on her lap.  Pollack stood guard at the doorway, pointing a firearm in the direction of the parishioners and the pulpit. The co-conspirator, wielding a gun, approached Individual 2 and pulled jewelry off her person.  Pollack then approached Individual 1 as he lay on the floor and made sure that all of his jewelry had been removed by Anderson and the co-conspirator.    

The charges in the indictment are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.  If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Section.  Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca M. Schuman is prosecuting the case.

The Defendants:

JUWAN ANDERSON
Age:  23
Brooklyn, New York

SAY-QUAN POLLACK (also known as “Say-Quan Pollock”)
Age:  23
Brooklyn, New York

E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 22-CR-428 (WFK)

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Security News: U.S. Attorney Announces Total Distributions Of Over $4 Billion To Victims Of Madoff Ponzi Scheme

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Payments of Approximately $372 Million Are the Eighth Distribution in a Series of Payments That Together Will Constitute the Largest Payment of Forfeited Funds in the History of the Department of Justice’s Victim Compensation Program

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, announced today that the Madoff Victim Fund established by the Department of Justice began its eighth distribution to victims of funds forfeited to the United States Government in connection with the Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (“BLMIS”) fraud scheme.  The distribution will include approximately $372 million in additional funds, bringing the total distributed to date to over $4 billion.  The funds will be sent to 40,000 victims worldwide, the eighth payment to victims that will bring their total recovery from all sources of compensation to 88.35% of their losses.  The Madoff Victim Fund will ultimately return to victims more than $4 billion in assets that have been recovered as compensation for losses suffered by the collapse of BLMIS, following the largest fraud in history, announced by this Office in 2013.  Another $5 billion in assets recovered by the U.S. Attorney’s Office are being separately paid to Madoff victims through the BLMIS Customer Fund administered by the Securities Investor Protection Act Trustee.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said:  “This Office continues its historic work seeking justice for the victims of Madoff’s heinous crimes.  Today’s additional payments of $372 million by this Office and the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section represents the eighth in a series of distributions that will leave victims with compensation for more than 88 percent of their losses—a truly remarkable result.  But our work is not fully complete, and this Office’s tireless commitment to compensating the victims who suffered as a result of Madoff’s crimes continues.”

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite said:  “The Criminal Division is proud to continue providing compensation to victims through the largest remission process the Department has overseen.  The billions distributed worldwide is a testament to the Department’s sustained efforts to ensure justice for the victims of Bernard Madoff’s massive fraud.” 

Since the early 1970s, BERNARD L. MADOFF (“MADOFF”) used his position as Chairman of BLMIS, the investment advisory business he founded, to steal billions from his clients.  On March 12, 2009, MADOFF pled guilty to 11 federal felonies, admitting that he had turned his wealth management business into the world’s largest Ponzi scheme, benefitting himself, his family, and select members of his inner circle.  On June 29, 2009, United States District Judge Denny Chin sentenced MADOFF to 150 years in prison for running the largest fraudulent scheme in history.  Judge Chin ordered MADOFF to forfeit $170,799,000,000 as part of MADOFF’s sentence.   

The Madoff Victim Fund is funded through recoveries by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in various criminal and civil forfeiture actions and is overseen by Richard Breeden, the former Chairman of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, in his capacity as Special Master appointed by the Department of Justice to assist in connection with the victim remission proceedings.

Of the approximately $4.05 billion that will be made available to victims through the Madoff Victim Fund, approximately $2.2 billion was collected as part of the civil forfeiture recovery from the estate of deceased MADOFF investor Jeffry Picower.  An additional $1.7 billion was collected as part of a Deferred Prosecution Agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. for MADOFF-related Bank Secrecy Act violations.  Additional funds were collected through criminal and civil forfeiture actions against MADOFF and his co-conspirators, and certain MADOFF investors.

Mr. Williams praised the work of the FBI and the Madoff Victim Fund and thanked the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section of the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division for their assistance.

For more information about the Madoff Victim Fund, compensation to victims of BLMIS, eligibility criteria, and payment information, please visit www.madoffvictimfund.com.

The case is being handled by the Office’s Money Laundering and Transnational Criminal Enterprises Unit.  Assistant United States Attorney Louis A. Pellegrino is in charge of the case.  The remission of these forfeited funds is being handled by the Office and the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section.

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Security News: Michigan Farmer Agrees To $1.2 Million Settlement To Resolve Allegations Of Federal Crop Insurance And Farm Benefit Program Fraud

Source: United States Department of Justice News

          GRAND RAPIDS – Gaylord D. Lincoln and G. Lincoln Farms, LLC, located in Springport, Michigan, have agreed to pay $1,200,000 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by causing the submission of fraudulent claims for federal crop insurance and federal farm benefit payments.  The settlement amount was negotiated based on the defendants’ ability to pay.

          U.S. Attorney Mark Totten stated, “Michigan farmers depend on federal programs to provide economic security, and these agricultural programs are essential to the national wellbeing.  But, in turn, USDA relies on farmers to tell the truth and play by the rules. My office is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to root out fraud on these programs.”

          This settlement resolves civil claims the United States brought against the defendants in a December 2021 lawsuit.  In its complaint, the United States alleged that the defendants defrauded the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (“USDA”) Farm Service Agency (“FSA”) by operating a scheme to avoid benefit program payment limitations. Specifically, the United States alleged that the defendants placed their farmland and crops in the names of their employees, who served as a facade for defendants but had no financial risk or interest in the crops and had them enroll in FSA benefit programs.  These individuals then provided the FSA benefit payments to the defendants.  The United States further alleged that defendants caused these individuals to take out fraudulent federal crop insurance policies for these crops, even though they had no insurable interest in these crops, and that the proceeds of the policies went to the defendants.

          Shantel R. Robinson, Special Agent-In-Charge, United States Department of Agriculture-Office of Inspector General (“USDA-OIG”), said, “The United States Department of Agriculture is committed to combatting crop insurance fraud through civil enforcement under the False Claims Act.  Fraudulent activity within the crop insurance program undermines its intent and misdirects taxpayer dollars from where they were intended.  The United States Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General will continue its mission to investigate allegations of waste, fraud, and abuse in USDA programs.”

          This settlement follows a related March 2022 civil settlement with the insurance agent and insurance agency that worked with the defendants.

          The resolutions obtained in this matter were the result of a coordinated effort between the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan, USDA-OIG, and USDA’s Risk Management Agency.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew J. Hull represented the United States.

          The complaint and other filings in this case can be found on the Court’s online docket under United States v. Lincoln, No. 1:21-cv-1089 (W.D. Mich.).

          The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

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