Month: April 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – A Shinnston, West Virginia, man was found guilty this week of illegally having an assault rifle and tampering with a witness to cover up the crime.

Charles Raymond Wable, 62, was found guilty by a federal jury after a two-day trial. Wable, a person prohibited from having firearms because of prior drug convictions, was under supervision by the U.S. Probation Office. During a home check, officers found a loaded assault rifle hidden under his bed. During a hearing in federal court to revoke his probation, Wable had someone falsely testify about the ownership of the firearm.

Wable will be sentenced on August 2, 2023. He faces up to 10 years in prison for the firearms charge and faces up to 20 years for witness tampering. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the U.S. Probation Office investigated.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brandon Flower and Andrew Cogar prosecuted the case on behalf of the government.

Chief U.S. District Court Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA – On April 11, 2023, Judge Ralph Beistline of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska sentenced a Mexican national to 14 years imprisonment followed by five years of supervised release for his role as the head of a drug trafficking organization that spanned multiple states. Judge Beistline also sentenced a lower-level coconspirator based in Alaska to a term of seven years of imprisonment on April 12, 2023.

According to court documents, Rene Alejandro Pompa-Villa pleaded guilty to continuing criminal enterprise and money laundering conspiracy for his role in a drug trafficking and distribution enterprise that stretched from Alaska to Arizona, California, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania. From 2016 through October 2020, Pompa-Villa, the leader of the organization, regularly mailed large amounts of drugs to distributors throughout the country, including mailing parcels to drug dealers in Anchorage, and deposited hundreds of thousands of dollars of drug proceeds into various bank accounts. During the nearly three-year investigation, law enforcement officers seized about six kilograms of heroin, four kilograms of methamphetamine and four kilograms of fentanyl sent through the mail. The Alaska drug distributor, Kyle Redpath, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances for receiving drugs through the mail from the drug trafficking organization. Redpath also deposited thousands of dollars into bank accounts owned by the organization.

The continuing criminal enterprise statute that Pompa-Villa was convicted of violating applies to high-level leaders of large and organized criminal organizations.

Pompa-Villa and Redpath were indicted in April 2021 along with 8 other members of the enterprise located in Anchorage, San Diego, and Tucson. Dustin Noonan was sentenced to 21 years imprisonment on March 23, 2023. Tyler Landroche was sentenced to 70 months imprisonment on February 23, 2023.  Kimberly Renee Mackey was sentenced to 48 months imprisonment on February 22, 2023. Jessica Twigg was sentenced to time served on May 16, 2022. Carlos Camacho, Christopher Pompa-Villa, and Heydimar Marrero are awaiting sentencing. Victor Pompa-Villa remains at large. 

“Today’s sentence disrupts a continuing criminal enterprise that spanned coast-to-coast and border-to-border,” said U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker. “The United States Attorney’s Office, in concert with our law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively prosecute and seek justice against traffickers of fentanyl and other illegal drugs that are poisoning our communities.”

“The sentence imposed today underscores the commitment of the DEA to tirelessly pursue, and go wherever an investigation leads, to ensure those who traffic poison into our communities are held accountable,” said Jacob D. Galvan, Acting Special Agent in Charge, DEA Seattle Field Division.

“The US Postal Inspection Service will continue to aggressively investigate individuals like Pompa-Villa who use the US Mail in support of their criminal activities.” said Inspector in Charge Anthony Galetti, “This should also serve as a reminder to those who abuse our community by peddling dangerous narcotics; law enforcement will find you and bring you to justice. Cases like these don’t come together without teamwork and we thank all agencies involved.”

“A rockstar once said ‘I’ve never had a problem with drugs. I’ve had problems with the police.’ Though not a rock star, Mr. Pompa-Villa, because of his drug trafficking, also has problems with the police,” said Special Agent in Charge Bret Kressin, IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS:CI), Seattle Field Office. “Illegal drugs are a tremendous plague on our communities. Because of that, IRS:CI will continue to work with our partners in the community and in law enforcement to stop the flow of drugs and cause as many problems for drug traffickers as possible, rockstar or not.”

U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker of the District of Alaska made the announcement.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); U.S. Department of Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); Alaska State Troopers and the Anchorage Police Department are investigating the case. The U.S. Marshals had a significant role in making the arrests and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in Tucson and San Diego played a critical role in the indictment of this case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher D. Schroeder and Karen Vandergaw prosecuted the case.

This investigation and prosecution are part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (“OCDETF”), which 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.

Beware of pills bought on the street: One Pill Can Kill. Fentanyl, a Schedule II controlled substance, is a highly potent opiate that can be diluted with cutting agents to create counterfeit pills that purport to mimic the effects of Oxycodone, Percocet, and other drugs, but can be obtained at a lower cost. However, very small variations in the amount or quality of fentanyl create huge effects on the potency of the counterfeit pills and can easily cause death. Fentanyl has now become the leading cause of drug overdose deaths in the United States. Counterfeit, fentanyl-laced pills are usually shaped and colored to resemble pills that are sold legitimately at pharmacies. For example, the counterfeit pills involved in this case, known as M30s, mimic Oxycodone, but when sold on the street they routinely contain fentanyl. These tablets are round and often light blue in color, though they may be made in many colors, and have “M” and “30” imprinted on opposite sides of the pill.

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usao/ak/23-025

Source: United States Department of Justice News

BISMARCK – United States Attorney Mac Schneider announced that on April 13, 2023, U.S. District Court Judge Daniel L. Hovland sentenced Carol Ann Feist, age 57, from Whitehall, Montana, to serve 65 months in federal prison, 3 years of supervised release, and payment of $134,000.00 in restitution after she pleaded guilty for committing Bank Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft against her elderly mother-in-law and father-in-law.  As part of this sentence, Judge Hovland imposed a $134,000.00 money judgment against Feist.

On October 26, 2021, Feist called a customer service representative at a US Bank, located in Bismarck, North Dakota, and pretended to be her elderly mother-in-law.  Feist fraudulently provided US Bank Representatives with her mother-in-law’s personal identifying information and deceitfully initiated a $134,000.00 wire transfer from her mother-in-law and father-in-law’s US Bank checking account to a title company located in Helena, Montana.  The $134,000.00 transaction represented the life savings of Feist’s mother-in-law and father-in-law, and Feist initiated this wire transfer without her mother-in-law or father-in-law’s knowledge or permission.  Thereafter, Feist utilized the $134,000.00 wire transfer as a down payment on a home she purchased in Whitehall, Montana.

Prior to Feist stealing $134,000 from her mother-in-law, she also fraudulently impersonated her father-in-law by listing him as a co-borrower on the Whitehall, Montana property.  Specifically, during the purchase of the property, Feist presented real estate closing documents which contained both her father-in-law’s forged signature and a fraudulent State of North Dakota notary stamp.  Feist conducted the transactions without her father-in-law’s knowledge or permission.  During the timeframe of Feist’s criminal actions, her father-in-law was in hospice care and has since passed away.

“Financial abuse of the elderly is a serious crime,” Schneider said. “Whether it is foreign-based scammers or a family member, federal law sets forth serious penalties for those who defraud senior citizens. Today’s strong sentence is a credit to our career prosecutors and partners in law enforcement.”  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bismarck Police Department, and the Jefferson County (Montana) Sherriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan J. O’Konek prosecuted this case.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

CONCORD – An East Rochester man was sentenced in federal court for defrauding a 79-year old family member of almost $84,000, U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announces.

Craig Corriveau, 51, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Samantha D. Elliott to 12 months in prison. Corriveau was also ordered to pay $83,629.69 in restitution to the victim.  On December 21, 2022, Corriveau pleaded guilty to wire fraud.

“The defendant targeted an elderly family member, which is particularly insidious,” said U.S. Attorney Young.  “The victim and their family placed their trust in Corriveau, and he abused that trust over the course of two years.  I thank the Rochester Police Department and FBI for their excellent investigative work in bringing the defendant to justice.  Our office will continue to work to protect the elderly population in our communities.” 

Between March 2019 and late 2021, the defendant stole approximately $84,000 from the victim and left them with almost $20,000 in credit card debt.  He spent more than $31,000 of the stolen funds at a Rochester gun store to purchase ammunition, a knife throwing set, and 32 firearms.  He only stopped stealing after he breached the credit limit on the victim’s credit cards and emptied their bank accounts.  The defendant lied to the Rochester Police Department by claiming the victim had authorized him to spend the stolen money. 

Corriveau used his knowledge of the victim’s personal identifying information to gain access to their bank accounts and credit cards.  The defendant set up paperless bank and credit card statements, so the victim was unable to detect the fraud.

The Rochester Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander S. Chen prosecuted the case.

If you or someone you know is age 60 or older and has experienced financial fraud, experienced professionals are standing by at the National Elder Fraud Hotline: 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This U.S. Department of Justice hotline, managed by the Office for Victims of Crime, can provide personalized support to callers by assessing the needs of the victim and identifying relevant next steps. Case managers will identify appropriate reporting agencies, provide information to callers to assist them in reporting, connect callers directly with appropriate agencies, and provide resources and referrals, on a case-by-case basis. Reporting is the first step. Reporting can help authorities identify those who commit fraud and reporting certain financial losses due to fraud as soon as possible can increase the likelihood of recovering losses. The hotline is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. English, Spanish and other languages are available.

More information about the Department’s efforts to help American seniors is available at its Elder Justice Initiative webpage. For more information about the Consumer Protection Branch and its enforcement efforts, visit its website at https://www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Department of Justice provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at https://www.ovc.gov.

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