Month: March 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts have entered into a consent decree with the City of Gloucester, Massachusetts, to resolve violations of the Clean Water Act regarding the city’s water pollution control facility that discharges undertreated effluent into Massachusetts Bay.

The settlement requires Gloucester to undertake a construction project to add secondary treatment to its water pollution control facility. Secondary treatment is a combination of physical and biological processes that break down many harmful elements in municipal sewage. The city has operated without secondary controls on its treatment plant under a permit waiver issued most recently in 2001. EPA and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) more recently determined that upgrading the City’s treatment plant to provide secondary treatment was needed to address water pollution in Massachusetts Bay. In response, under the proposed settlement the city agreed to proceed with the upgrades. The cost of the remedial measures is expected to be in excess of $150 million.

“The Clean Water Act requires controls to limit the harmful impacts of sewage discharges,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The settlement will ensure significant, long-term investment into the City’s water treatment infrastructure to safeguard the health of Massachusetts Bay.”

“Fiercely protecting our environment is a civil and human rights issue. Ensuring that bodies of water are not contaminated with harmful toxins and pollutants remains a vital part of this work. This consent decree requires Gloucester to take significant steps to improve the quality of the water it discharges into Massachusetts Bay,” said U.S. Attorney Rachael S. Rollins for the District of Massachusetts. “The successful implementation of the Consent Decree will ensure a healthier environment for the residents of Gloucester and all of us in the Commonwealth. My office remains committed to fighting for healthier, cleaner and safer communities.”

“Sewage can carry harmful pollutants, posing potential harm to human health and aquatic organisms,” said Acting Assistant Administrator Larry Starfield of the EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “By reducing discharges into Massachusetts Bay, this settlement will result in cleaner, safer water, benefiting both local communities and the environment.”

In 2022, EPA issued a new NPDES Permit to the City of Gloucester which included pollution limits that the current treatment plant cannot meet because the plant only provides primary treatment, known as clarification or settling and disinfection. Complying with the proposed consent decree, if entered by the federal court, will help ensure that Gloucester comes into compliance with the Clean Water Act.

The City of Gloucester has already provided an aggressive schedule to EPA and MassDEP for design and construction of secondary treatment. The city has proposed to complete design and bidding of the project by the end of 2024, complete construction of secondary treatment by the end of 2027, and achieve compliance with all permit limits by March 30, 2028.

Undertreated sewage from the city’s existing water treatment facility results in a variety of harmful discharges into Massachusetts Bay, including disease causing organisms and toxic pollutants.

The proposed consent decree is subject to a 30-day public comment period and court approval after it is published in the Federal Register. It is available at www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.

The EPA and MassDEP are investigating the case.

Assistant Section Chief Henry Friedman of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Enforcement Section, Assistant U.S. Attorney Annapurna Balakrishna for the District of Massachusetts and EPA Attorney Jeff Kopf are handling this matter.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Memphis, TN – A federal grand jury has returned a superseding indictment charging Adrian Pegues, 
19, and Malik Malone, 18, both of Memphis, with multiple charges arising from a series of violent 
events that occurred in late December 2022 in Memphis and Germantown. The indictment includes 
charges of kidnapping, bank robbery, carjacking, and the use of a firearm during a crime of 
violence. United States Attorney Kevin G. Ritz announced the charges today.

According to U.S. Attorney Ritz, the charges and other information presented in court, it is 
alleged that that on December 20, 2022, Pegues and Malone carjacked and kidnapped two individuals 
separately, forced one of the individuals to withdraw money from an ATM, and attempted to do the 
same with the other. It is also alleged that, ten days later, on December 30, 2022, the two men 
attempted to kidnap a person in Germantown with the intent to commit another robbery. That 
kidnapping was unsuccessful.

Both men have been arrested and are in federal custody and awaiting arraignment on the superseding indictment.

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force and the Germantown Police Department.

Members of the public are reminded that an indictment is an accusation and only contains charges. 
The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Assistant United States Attorney Greg Wagner is handling the prosecution of this matter
for the government.
 

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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

A federal jury convicted four leaders of the Gangster Disciples today for their participation in a years-long interstate racketeering conspiracy involving drug trafficking, witness tampering, and multiple murders.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, the four defendants were members of the Gangster Disciples, a gang with a decades-long history of lawlessness and violence. The Gangster Disciples have a presence throughout the United States, including in state and federal prisons. The gang employs a structured hierarchy, with leadership positions such as national “Board Members” and state “Governors.” As part of their efforts to maintain control of the gang, the defendants murdered two other members who opposed their regime.

On May 18, 2018, Warren Griffin, aka GG, aka Big Head, 53, of Glenwood, Illinois, drove to the south side of Chicago with fellow Gangster Disciples Board Member Anthony Dobbins to murder a former powerful Board Member (Victim-1), because he opposed their status as Board Members in the gang. Griffin lured Victim-1, and Dobbins came up behind Victim-1 and shot him three times in the back and once in the face.

On April 28, 2018, Sean Clemon, aka Pops, 52, of Cape Girardeau, Missouri, and Dominique Maxwell, aka D-Mac, aka Monster, 30, also of Cape Girardeau, on orders from Frank Smith, aka Little Frank, aka Red Beard, 49, of Naperville, Illinois, fatally shot another victim (Victim-2) and injured two other men in Bridgeton, Missouri. The shooting was part of a leadership dispute in which Board Members Smith and Griffin sought to remove another Gangster Disciple member from his position as Governor of Missouri. Smith texted “Mike Tyson Punch Out” to Maxwell prior the shooting, which was an order to commit “extreme violence,” including murder. Both Clemon and Maxwell were promoted to leadership positions within the gang for committing this murder.

The defendants’ other acts of violence included a nightclub stabbing in East St. Louis, Illinois, and a nonfatal shooting in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Gangster Disciples members also engaged in various acts of drug trafficking, including a scheme to smuggle the synthetic drug “K2” into Missouri state prisons.

All four defendants were convicted of Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act conspiracy and murder in aid of racketeering, and face a mandatory sentence of life in prison. The sentencing dates have not yet been set.

Smith, Maxwell, and Clemon were also convicted of racketeering conspiracy, as well as firearms offenses related to the murder of Victim-2. Griffin was also convicted of racketeering conspiracy, as well as firearms offenses related to the murder of Victim-1.

Dobbins pleaded guilty to racketeering conspiracy on Jan. 17.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Rachelle Aud Crowe for the Southern District of Illinois made the announcement.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Cape Girardeau Field Office; Federal Bureau of Prisons; FBI; DEA; Missouri Department of Corrections; Illinois State Police; Chicago Police Department; Bridgeton Police Department; Cape Girardeau Police Department; Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis; and O’Fallon (IL) Police Department investigated the case.

Trial Attorneys Jeremy Franker, Alexander Gottfried, and Christopher Usher of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ali Summers for the Southern District of Illinois provided substantial assistance.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

A federal jury convicted an Arizona man after Tulsa police officers found him with more than 8,000 fentanyl pills and multiple stolen firearms, announced U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

Hatcher Ramon Day, 27, of Phoenix, Arizona, was convicted Thursday of possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute; possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; and felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

“Hatcher Day came from Arizona to Oklahoma for the purpose of distributing fentanyl. He further possessed five firearms to help protect his illicit product and profits,” said US Attorney Clint Johnson. “Drugs and guns are never a good combination and too often result in violence and death. These dealers wreak havoc on families and contribute to the economic decline in neighborhoods. My office and our partners at the Tulsa Police Department and ATF are committed to stopping them.”

In September 2022, an officer with the Tulsa Police Department’s Human Trafficking and Vice Unit, received a tip about a man who was selling fentanyl pills out of a Tulsa home. A subsequent records check revealed that the residence was a short-term Airbnb rental property.

On Sept. 19, 2022, Tulsa police officers executed a search warrant on the home, where Day was present. During the search, they discovered more than 8,000 fentanyl pills weighing 888 grams, five firearms, and numerous rounds of ammunition. Day was a convicted felon and, therefore, prohibited from possessing firearms. Officers discovered four of the five firearms were stolen when they checked the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database. Additionally, officers established that Day was the individual who rented the property through Airbnb.

During trial, a witness testified that he and Day came from Arizona to Tulsa for the purpose of distributing fentanyl. He also testified that before the search warrant was executed on the home, he witnessed Day conduct a drug deal, where Day agreed to sell a customer two “boats” of fentanyl. A “boat” is considered one thousand fentanyl pills.

The Tulsa Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathan E. Michel and Kenneth Elmore prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

A Maryland man was sentenced today to life in prison for racketeering, murder in aid of racketeering, and conspiring to destroy evidence connected to his participation in La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13).

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Jose Domingo Ordonez-Zometa, aka Felon, 33, of Landover Hills, was a member of MS-13, a transnational criminal enterprise and one of the largest street gangs in the United States that is composed primarily of immigrants or descendants from El Salvador and other central American countries. Ordonez-Zometa and his co-conspirators – Jose Rafael Ortega-Ayala and Jose Henry Hernandez-Garcia – were members and associates of the Los Ghettos Criminales Salvatruchas (LGCS or Ghettos) clique of MS-13. Ordonez-Zometa was the leader of the LGCS clique.

Between August 2018 and April 2019, Ordonez-Zometa and his co-conspirators participated in the MS-13 criminal enterprise by engaging in acts of violence, including murder, the destruction of evidence, and witness tampering, among other crimes. Ordonez-Zometa and his fellow gang members committed these crimes to increase MS-13’s power in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, including Maryland and Virginia. 

As part of the conspiracy, MS-13 members were expected to protect the name, reputation, and status of the gang, using any means necessary to force respect, including acts of intimidation and violence. One of the principal rules of MS-13 is that its members must attack and kill rivals, often referred to as “chavalas,” whenever possible. Participation in criminal activity by a member, particularly in violent acts directed at rival gangs or as directed by gang leadership, increases the respect accorded to that member, resulting in that member maintaining or increasing his position in the gang, and opens the door to promotion to a leadership position. 

On March 8, 2019, Ordonez-Zometa called a meeting of the LGCS clique at his house to discuss clique matters, including recent contacts that another LGCS clique member (Victim 1) had with the police. Ordonez-Zometa, his co-conspirators, Victim 1, and other MS-13 members participated in the meeting, during which Ordonez-Zometa questioned Victim 1 about his/her cooperation with police. During the questioning, Ordonez-Zometa, his co-conspirators, and at least one other MS-13 member assaulted Victim 1 based on their incorrect suspicions that Victim 1 was cooperating with law enforcement. They also assaulted another MS-13 member who attempted to defend Victim 1. The assault culminated with Ordonez-Zometa ordering that Victim 1 be killed. His co-conspirators and other MS-13 members then stabbed and murdered Victim 1 in Ordonez-Zometa’s basement. 

After the murder, Ordonez-Zometa ordered his co-conspirators and other LGCS clique members to conceal and destroy evidence of the murder. Ortega-Ayala and other MS-13 members transported the body of the victim to a secluded location in Stafford County, Virginia. They set the victim’s body on fire and then destroyed and concealed evidence of the murder from the vehicle used to transport the victim. Meanwhile, Ordonez-Zometa, Hernandez-Garcia, and another MS-13 member stayed at the crime scene and attempted to remove, destroy, and conceal evidence of the murder, including Victim 1’s blood. 

In December 2022, Ordonez-Zometa, Ortega-Ayala, and Hernandez-Garcia were convicted at trial of racketeering and murder in aid of racketeering conspiracies, committing murder in aid of racketeering, and conspiracy to destroy and conceal evidence.

Ortega-Ayala and Hernandez-Garcia also face a mandatory sentence of life in prison. Their sentencing dates have not yet been set.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron for the District of Maryland, and Assistant Director Luis Quesada of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division made the announcement.

The FBI, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office, the Prince George’s County Police Department, and the Fairfax County Police Department investigated the case, with valuable assistance from the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Office.

Trial Attorneys Jared Engelking and Matthew Hoff of the Criminal Division’s Organized Crime and Gang Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Morgan for the District of Maryland 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 make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. PSN is 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.