Month: March 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Memphis, TN – A superseding indictment has been returned by a federal grand jury charging three men, Michael Hobson, 30, and Tomarcus Baskerville, 34, of Somerville, Tennessee, and Christopher Peeler, 31, of Moscow, Tennessee, with committing murder in aid of racketeering and causing death using a firearm. The charges arise from a 2015 Hardeman County murder.

“This is another great example of the diligent work of the law enforcement community to rid our communities of the violence that gang members inflict upon our citizens. This indictment should serve as notice that we will use every available resource to bring those who engage in organized crime to justice,” said U.S. Attorney Kevin Ritz.

“We applaud the diligent and thorough work of our special agents and law enforcement partners and are grateful for the continued work of the U.S. Attorney in ensuring the individuals responsible for this deadly and devastating string of organized crime, throughout West Tennessee, will be held accountable for every criminal act they have committed,” said TBI Director David Rausch.

According to U.S. Attorney Ritz, as well as the charges and information presented in court, in 2022, a federal grand jury indicted 14 alleged members and associates of the Traveling Vice Lord/Junk Yard Dog gang on various racketeering charges, including murder, attempted murders, and narcotic trafficking. This superseding indictment adds charges for a second murder and includes Michael Hobson as an alleged gang member and offender.

The indictment includes charges for six separate shootings, two murders, and four attempted murders in Hardeman County. As a result of these crimes, nine individuals were shot, and two of those victims died. Each of the defendants are being detained.

The RICO conspiracy charge carries a maximum sentence of life. The charge of murder in aid of racketeering charge carries a sentence of life imprisonment. Each of the acts of brandishing and discharging a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence carries a penalty of not less than 10 years consecutive to its related attempted murder (Violent Crime in Aid in Racketeering).

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI), the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department, and the Hardeman County Sheriff’s Department.

Members of the public are reminded that an indictment only contains charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Assistant United States Attorneys Neal Oldham and Beth Boswell are prosecuting the case.

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For more information, please contact Public Information Officer Cherri Green at (901) 544-4231 or cherri.green@usdoj.gov. Follow @WDTNNews on Twitter for office news and updates.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

DETROIT – A Michigan man was arrested and charged in a criminal complaint with illegally possessing firearms after having been committed to a mental institution and while being an unlawful user of a controlled substance, announced United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison. The man came to the attention of the FBI after he made numerous threats over YouTube to kill FBI agents, members of the LGBTQ community, President Biden, and Governor Whitmer.    

Ison was joined in the announcement by James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the Detroit Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

According to the criminal complaint, Randall Robert Berka II, 30, of Sebewaing, Michigan, was illegally in possession of four firearms, three long guns and a pistol, after he had been committed to a mental institution and while he was a daily user of marijuana.  Berka also was in possession of ammunition and body armor.  The firearms were previously purchased for Berka by a relative who now feared that his mental health treatment was not working and was scared of Berka.  The relative cooperated with FBI agents in securing the complaint.    

The complaint further provides that Berka came to the attention of the FBI after Google reported to the agency that Berka was posting various threats on YouTube.  Among other statements, Berka posted the following: “im going to kill these democrats biden deserves to die,” “im gonna kill lgbt freaks,” “you could be like me and get guns and threaten to kill politicians. Im more than willing tot kill whitmer and I do live in Michigan,” “Ill assault her . . . with my bullets,” and “i buy guns though and plot to kill people.”

The FBI arrested Berka at his residence in Sebewaing on Thursday, March 9, 2023. He will make his initial appearance in U.S. District Court today in the Bay City, Michigan courthouse.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office will be asking the Court to hold Berka in pretrial detention because of his danger to the community and the risk that he will flee.         

“We will take immediate action when we learn of individuals illegally possessing firearms and threatening to harm or kill others,” said U.S. Attorney Ison.  “I applaud Google’s vigilance in this matter, and we hope members of the community will, likewise, pay attention and report such conduct to law enforcement.”

“This defendant’s actions were very alarming,” said James A. Tarasca, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan. “When free speech crosses a line and becomes a threat of violence against another  –  aggravated by the illegal possession of firearms – the full investigative resources of the FBI will be brought to bear. As always, we encourage the public to be vigilant and report concerning behavior to the FBI and local law enforcement.”

Based on the charges in the complaint, Berka faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted. 

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

The case is being investigated by special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony Vance.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher today sentenced Randy Owens, age 30, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 78 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.  

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (“ATF”) Baltimore Field Division; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department (“BPD”).

According to Owens’ guilty plea, on July 22, 2019, BPD detectives learned that an individual in the 600 block of North Edgewood Street in Southwest Baltimore was possibly armed with a handgun that was hidden in a striped bag.  BPD officers went to that location and spotted a person, later identified as Randy Owens, matching the description, including the striped bag.  Owens was observed trying to conceal himself from the officers are he watched them through a parked vehicle’s windows as they drove down the 600 block of N. Edgewood Street.  The officers circled the block and then drove down the 600 block of N. Edgewood a second time.  As they turned into the block, the officers saw Owens standing on the porch of a residence in the 600 block of N. Edgewood.  A BPD officer approached Owens and asked him to approach the officer.  Owens walked off the front porch and towards the sidewalk but as the BPD officer approached, Owens ran away, clutching the striped bag.  After a brief foot chase, BPD officers caught Owens.  A search of the striped bag revealed an IMI Uzi 9mm semiautomatic pistol, loaded with 31 rounds of 9mm ammunition.  Owens knew that as a result of his previous felony convictions, he was prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.

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.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the ATF and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney John W. Sippel, Jr., 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 https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/project-safe-neighborhoods-psn and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

A federal jury convicted a physician today for a $5 million health care fraud scheme.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Frederick Gooding, 71, of Wilmington, Delaware, owned and operated a now-shuttered physiatry and pain management practice in Washington, D.C. Between 2015 and 2018, Gooding fraudulently billed Medicare more than $5 million for injections he did not perform, or did not provide as billed, including complicated spinal injections for which he did not own the necessary equipment.

Gooding was convicted of 11 counts of health care fraud. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 26 and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each count. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Assistant Director in Charge Steven D’Antuono of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Maureen Dixon of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General’s (HHS-OIG) Philadelphia Regional Office made the announcement.

The FBI and HHS-OIG, with assistance from the Washington, D.C. Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Jil Simon and Emily Gurskis of the Justice Department’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case. Assistant Chiefs Jillian Willis and Scott Armstrong were also involved in the prosecution.

The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, comprised of 15 strike forces operating in 25 federal districts, has charged more than 5,000 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $24 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the Office of the Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at https://www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.