Month: March 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

PROVIDENCE – A United Parcel Service employee twice convicted and incarcerated for trafficking kilos of heroin, and, who allegedly used his position at UPS to attempt to locate a package shipped from Columbia that contained multiple kilograms of cocaine, has been ordered detained in federal custody on drug trafficking charges, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.

In November 2022, Custom and Border Protection intercepted a package sent from Colombia and it was discovered that it contained cocaine packed inside of two ball bearings. When the package failed to be delivered to one of several addresses associated with Levys Tovar, 43, of Central Falls and Pawtucket, Tovar allegedly inquired of a customer service supervisor where he worked as to the location of the package. Tovar allegedly claimed that he was attempting to locate the package “for his neighbor.”

Information obtained by Homeland Security Investigations determined that the intended delivery address was the home Tovar shared with his girlfriend and that the “neighbor” Tovar described did not exist. 

Tovar, charged by way of a criminal complaint with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute over 500 grams of cocaine and unlawful use of a communication facility (including the mails) to facilitate the distribution of a controlled substance, was ordered detained following his arrest on Monday.

A federal criminal complaint is merely an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

According to court records, Tovar was convicted in federal court in 2004 of possession with intent to distribute one kilogram of heroin, and again in 2011on a charge of attempt to possess with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin. Tovar is currently on supervised release for the 2011conviction, and is scheduled to return to court on March 7, 2023, for an initial appearance as an alleged violator of supervised release.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacey A. Erickson.

The matter was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations’ Northeast Corridor Border Enforcement Team; Custom and Border Protection; and the Central Falls, Pawtucket, Providence, and Warwick Police Departments.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Sean Lee Coy, 28, of Okaloosa County, Florida, was sentenced to five years in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The sentence was announced by Jason R. Coody, Unites States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

“Our law enforcement partnerships play such a vital role in fighting violent crime and protecting the public,” said U.S. Attorney Coody. “This sentencing is another example that working jointly with our partners is making our communities safer.”

On January 3, 2022, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office deputies stopped Coy for driving with an expired tag.  After observing a glass smoking pipe in the vehicle and smelling marijuana, the deputies searched Coy and the vehicle, finding several small baggies of methamphetamine, marijuana, and a Ruger LCP .380 caliber pistol loaded with 13 rounds in an extended magazine.  Coy attempted to flee the scene but was quickly apprehended.  In 2016, Coy was convicted by the state of Florida of Aggravated Battery with a Deadly Weapon, stemming from a shooting in which he and two other individuals fired into a car with multiple passengers at close range, injuring four people.  Coy was sentenced to 5 years for that crime and released in September of 2020. 

“Successes like this, connected to the Project Safe Neighborhoods program, are a perfect example of how a dedicated strategy to combat violence will pay-off both short-term and long-term.”  “We are committed to being a steadfast partner in this mission, which benefits our area’s quality of life on multiple levels,” said Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden.

This case resulted from a joint investigation by the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Assistant United States Attorney Walter Narramore prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

As part of its PSN strategy, the United States Attorney’s Office is encouraging everyone to lock their car doors, particularly at night. Burglaries from unlocked automobiles are a significant source of guns for criminals in the Northern District of Florida. Please do your part and protect yourself by locking your car doors.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

DETROIT – A federal jury today convicted the former resident of a Detroit residential reentry center of receiving child pornography, United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced today.

Joining Ison in the announcement was James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The trial, which began on Wednesday, February 22, 2023, was conducted before United States District Judge Terrence G. Berg. 

According to the evidence presented at trial, in June 2009, United States District Judge Robert H. Cleland sentenced Matthew Mercer-Kinser, now 36, to serve 151 months in custody for transporting child pornography. In July 2019, the Bureau of Prisons designated Mercer-Kinser to serve the final months of this sentence in a Detroit residential reentry center (RRC). While at the RRC, Mercer-Kinser sent numerous sexually explicit text messages to a minor relative. A concerned adult learned of these communications and reported Mercer-Kinser to the FBI. Execution of a search warrant for Mercer-Kinser’s smartphone revealed several images of child pornography and numerous disturbing communications demonstrating Mercer-Kinser’s continued, prolific sexual interest in children. When Mercer-Kinser testified in his own defense during trial, he admitted his sexual fetish for children.

Mercer-Kinser faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison. A sentencing date has been set for June 29, 2023, at 9 am.

“Protecting children from dangerous predators is a top priority for our office,” U.S. Attorney Ison said. “The actions of a concerned adult were crucial in bringing the crime in this case to the attention of law enforcement, and parents and other relatives need to be vigilant in watching out for signs of abuse or the exploitation of our kids.”    

“This defendant’s repeat sexual offenses make him an extreme danger to our youth. Today’s guilty verdict is a step closer to ensuring Mercer-Kinser no longer has access to children in any way,” said James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Detroit Field Office. “The combined efforts of the member agencies in the FBI’s Southeast Michigan Trafficking and Exploitation Task Force continue to form a formidable barrier between predators and our children.”

The case was investigated by special agents of the FBI. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Erin Shaw and Maggie Smith.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – Brian Carruth, 45, currently of Rockport, Texas, was found guilty after a three-day jury trial on charges stemming from an incident in which he unlawfully carried an unregistered rifle and ammunition into the District of Columbia. 

            The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Chief Alfonso Dyson, U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division.

            According to the government’s evidence at trial, on December 5, 2021, U.S. Secret Service officers stopped Mr. Carruth, who was then a resident of Burbank, Ohio, in his vehicle near the corner of 18th St. and G St. NW, roughly one block from the White House.  Officers first took note of Mr. Carruth’s pickup truck because it had what appeared to be a rifle case mounted to the bed portion of the vehicle.  After being stopped, Mr. Carruth told officers that he was in Washington, D.C., on a matter of national security with the Department of the Interior and had plans to visit the White House.  He later informed officers that there was a hunting rifle in the backseat area of his truck.  Upon searching Mr. Carruth’s vehicle, officers found a bolt-action rifle equipped with a scope and 38 rounds of live ammunition, as well as two spent shell casings.  The rifle was not registered in Washington, D.C.  In addition, officers discovered documents in Mr. Carruth’s truck that appeared to discuss fundamentally restructuring and resetting the U.S. federal government.

            Mr. Carruth was found guilty of one count of Carrying a Rifle or Shotgun Outside Home or Place of Business, one count of Possession of an Unregistered Firearm, and one count of Unlawful Possession of Ammunition.  The guilty verdict followed a three-day trial before the Honorable Michael O’Keefe in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.  The Honorable Andrea Hertzfeld scheduled sentencing for April 28, 2023.

            In announcing the conviction, U.S. Attorney Graves and Chief Dyson commended the work of those who investigated the case from the U.S. Secret Service.  They also expressed appreciation for the work of those who handled the case at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Lashaune Briggs.

            Finally, they commended the efforts of Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Derbish and Assistant U.S. Attorney Julian Ginos, who prosecuted the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Callie Hyde, who investigated the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

PROVIDENCE – A Cumberland man who accessed and downloaded images and videos of child pornography, including images of prepubescent children, was sentenced today to nearly three years in federal prison, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.

In January 2022, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children provided Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with information that they obtained from a Canadian-based online messaging and chat service that, on multiple dates, an IP address and email, later determined by law enforcement to belong to Patrick K. Newton, 27, was used on multiple dates to access and view child pornography.

On March 30, 2022, HSI agents and members of the Rhode Island State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force executed a court-authorized search of Newton’s residence and found that electronic media storage devices possessed by Newton contained videos and images of child pornography.

Newton pleaded guilty on October 17, 2022, to a charge of possession of child pornography. He was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge Mary S. McElroy to thirty-three months in federal prison to be followed by five years of federal supervised release.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Paul F. Daly, Jr. 

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