Month: January 2023

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Albuquerque man pleads guilty to cyberstalking, child pornography offenses

Source: United States Department of Justice News

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, announced that Zachary Dosch pleaded guilty on Dec. 20, 2022, to cyberstalking, receipt of child pornography, and distribution of child pornography. Dosch, 23, of Albuquerque, will remain in custody pending sentencing, which has not been scheduled.

According to court records, on Nov. 30, 2019, a Snapchat user reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) that the user had received threats through Snapchat, and that a friend had received possible child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Both the threat and the CSAM were sent from an account with the same username as a Kik profile used by Dosch. Additionally, from Oct. 29, 2019, through May 12, 2021, NCMEC received numerous Cybertips regarding CSAM related to a Discord username associated with Dosch.

In his plea agreement, Dosch admitted that beginning at least in October 2019 and continuing until his arrest on June 17, 2021, he targeted minors online for sexual extortion, and, using various social media platforms, received, uploaded and shared CSAM. He also acknowledged extorting sexually explicit material from minors and causing them significant emotional distress.

By the terms of the plea agreement, Dosch faces up to 50 years in prison and will be required to register as a sex offender.

The FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office and the Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory as part of the New Mexico Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force. The ICAC Task Force Program is a nation-wide network of task forces including over 90 federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies in New Mexico dedicated to investigating, prosecuting and developing effective responses to Internet crimes against children.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Mease is prosecuting the case as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit http://www.justice.gov/psc/.

For more information on sextortion and how to get help, visit the FBI website.

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Jefferson City Man Sentenced for Meth Trafficking, Illegal Firearm

Source: United States Department of Justice News

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Jefferson City, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for illegally possessing a firearm and methamphetamine to distribute.

Clint Alexander Doll, 35, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

On July 28, 2022, Doll pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.

Jefferson City police officers executed a search warrant at Doll’s residence on June 3, 2021. Doll was found in a bedroom on the lower level of his residence, where he packaged methamphetamine for distribution. In that room, officers seized a bag that contained 534.34 grams of methamphetamine, approximately $39,536 in cash that was stashed inside a camera-style bag, a Remington 12-gauge shotgun, 25 shotgun shells, four cell phones, and drug paraphernalia.

Text messages retrieved from the cell phones showed that Doll coordinated the distribution of methamphetamine among several individuals. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Doll must forfeit to the government the $39,536 seized by law enforcement officers, which he admitted was proceeds from the distribution of methamphetamine.

This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Heather D. Richenberger. It was investigated by the Jefferson City, Mo., Police Department, the Cole County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

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Defense News: USS Newport News (SSN 750) Returns Home, Earns Coveted Battle ‘E’ Award

Source: United States Navy

The submarine returned home to Naval Submarine Base New London on a rainy Tuesday, Jan. 3, after a six-month deployment under the command of Cmdr. Joseph A. Fontenot. But that’s not the only good news for Newport News, which garnered one of the top honors on the Groton waterfront.

“It’s a great start to 2023 welcoming Cmdr. Fontenot and the crew of Newport News back home,” said Capt. Thomas O’Donnell, commander of Submarine Squadron (SUBRON) 12, under which Newport News operates. “These Sailors reached such a level of excellence in their performance that they earned the 2022 Battle E award as the top-performing submarine in Squadron 12, an honor bestowed upon the very best we send to sea.

“The steady, unwavering presence of U.S. Navy submarines worldwide provides our country with a tremendous military edge, but it takes a lot of hard work and commitment on the part of our Sailors and their families to maintain that vigilance and advantage,” he continued. “I want to congratulate the Sailors of Newport News for a job well-done on their deployment and thank their loved ones for their sacrifices here at home.”

The Navy’s Battle Effectiveness – widely known as “Battle E”– awards recognize the ships at each squadron that attain the highest overall operational readiness and performance.

During its deployment to the U.S. European Command area of responsibility, Newport News steamed nearly 33,000 nautical miles and made port calls to Tromso, Norway; Faslane, Scotland; and Rota, Spain. Thirty-nine personnel earned their submarine warfare devices – commonly referred to as “dolphins” – during the deployment and the Newport News Sailors racked up more than 350 individual watchstation qualifications at sea.

“I’m tremendously proud of this elite crew for its tireless pursuit of excellence over the past six months at sea,” said Fontenot. “From planning, to material management, to mission execution, this team of dedicated professionals ensured Newport News was in the right place, at the right time, with the right readiness to safely accomplish European Command’s highest priority missions with no missed operational days.

“Newport News and her Sailors showed once again on this deployment why our Navy counts on us to be a stalwart defender of freedom around the world,” he continued. “Of course, our deep gratitude goes out to our families and loved ones for their steadfast support of our Sailors and the sacrifices they made back home so that we could execute our tasking. We couldn’t be happier to be back home with them to celebrate the New Year.”

Hannah Clarke and her husband, Lt.j.g. Daniel Clarke were recognized with the ceremonial first kiss on the pier, while Petty Officer 2nd Class Forrest Keith was recognized with the first hug with his family – wife Chelsea and children Ceinwyn, 6, and Christopher, 4.

Also recognized during the homecoming were Newport News Sailor of the Year Petty Officer 1st Class Spencer Heline and his wife, Kristy Dowd; Junior Sailor of the Year Petty Officer 2nd Class Marcus Stanfield and his wife, Atlagracia Lara-Stanfield; and Bluejacket of the Year Seaman Keil Gerard and his significant other, Katelyn Deibert.

USS Newport News was commissioned on June 3, 1989. SSN 750 is the third U.S. Navy warship named for the Virginia shipbuilding city Newport News, following a World War I cargo ship and a Des Moines-class heavy cruiser that was in service from 1948-1978. The submarine Newport News has a crew of more than 130 personnel, is more than 361 feet long with a beam of more than 32 feet.

Fast-attack submarines are multi-mission platforms enabling five of the six Navy maritime strategy core capabilities – sea control, power projection, forward presence, maritime security and deterrence. They are designed to excel in anti-submarine warfare, anti-ship warfare, strike warfare, special operations, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, irregular warfare and mine warfare. Fast-attack submarines project power ashore with special operations forces and Tomahawk cruise missiles in the prevention or response to regional crises.

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Defense News: Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune Welcomes New Year’s Baby

Source: United States Navy

While Rowan arrived after New Year’s Day, his parents say they are happy he is the first baby at Naval for the new year. Rowan’s mother, who is from Jacksonville, North Carolina, said she was also born at Naval.

“We are glad he came before his due date and happy he is here. Everyone here has just done an amazing job and are super nice; we wish them the best,” said Sgt. Kouris, a United States Marine stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.

NMCCL congratulates the family and wishes them a safe and happy 2023.

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Council Bluffs Man Sentenced to 121 Months in Federal Prison for Child Pornography Offense

Source: United States Department of Justice News

COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA – James Matthew Hargens, age 37, of Council Bluffs, was sentenced on December 15, 2022, to 121 months in prison following his plea of guilty to Receipt of Child Pornography. Hargens will be required to register as a sex offender and serve five years of supervised release following his release from prison. Hargens was also ordered to pay restitution.

In November 2021 a social media application sent a cybertip to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children regarding an account that uploaded several images and videos of child pornography. The cybertip was referred to Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children and the Council Bluffs Police Department initiated an investigation. The investigation led to a search warrant at Hargens residence. A forensic analysis identified that Hargens received, possessed, and downloaded numerous images and videos of child pornography.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The investigation was conducted by the Council Bluffs Police Department, the United States Secret Service National Computer Forensics Institute who provided training and equipment and was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.