Month: April 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON — A Pennsylvania man has been arrested on felony and misdemeanor charges for his actions during the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election.

            Anthony Nolf, 37, of Birdsboro, Pennsylvania, is charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with civil disorder, a felony, as well as the misdemeanor offenses of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds. He was arrested today in Pennsylvania and had an initial appearance in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

            Heather Kepley, 36, of Millsboro, Delaware, is also named in the complaint and is charged with the misdemeanor offenses of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds. She was arrested this morning in Delaware and had an initial appearance in the District of Delaware.

            According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, Nolf and Kepley entered the Capitol grounds and approached the West front near the Inaugural Stage, where they assisted other rioters in moving bike racks from an area near the scaffolding that were impeding the rioters’ approach to the Capitol building. After moving one of the bike racks, the pair made their way to the Lower West Terrace and the Tunnel. Kepley and Nolf joined other rioters in attempting to force their way past the law enforcement officers responsible for securing the Tunnel.

            While inside the Tunnel, Nolf confronted and assisted the crowd in confronting the police officers that were preventing the Tunnel and the Capitol from being breached. Specifically, while inside the Tunnel, Nolf added his force, momentum, body, and effort to the other rioters in a “heave-ho” effort. This put intense aggregate pressure on the police line in front of the rioters. Officers succeeded in repelling Nolf and Kepley and other rioters out of the Tunnel. Nolf and Kepley stood outside the Tunnel for a period of time and watched as officers cleared the Tunnel of protestors. They then walked away from the Tunnel.

            This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the District of Delaware and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

            The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Baltimore, Philadelphia, and Washington Field Offices. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 26 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,000 individuals have been arrested in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 320 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement. The investigation remains ongoing. 

            Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

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

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Stephanie A. Gallagher sentenced Eric Wilson, age 51, of Owings Mills, Maryland, yesterday to six years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, on drug conspiracy and distribution charges related to his supplying cocaine, crack cocaine and fentanyl to drug traffickers operating in West and Northwest Baltimore.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron; Special Agent in Charge Jarod Forget of the Drug Enforcement Administration – Washington Field Division; and Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department.

According to his guilty plea, in April 2020, law enforcement began an investigation into drug trafficking in West and Northwest Baltimore.  During the investigation, Wilson was identified as a source of supply for co-conspirators involved in the drug trafficking organization (“DTO”).  Law enforcement intercepted calls between Wilson and his co-conspirators discussing the distribution of cocaine, crack cocaine and fentanyl, as well as other controlled substances.

Wilson admitted that he maintained two stash locations to store, cut and package drugs with other members of the conspiracy—his residence in Owings Mills, Maryland and a home in the 3200 block of Presstman Street in Baltimore.  On April 29, 2021, investigators executed search warrants at both locations.  From the Owings Mills residence law enforcement recovered: approximately 158 grams of a cocaine and fentanyl mixture; drug paraphernalia; one .40 caliber round of ammunition; $23,126 in cash, believed to be drug proceeds; and nine phones.  From the Presstman Street residence law enforcement recovered: a mixture containing approximately 1,541 grams of cocaine; 717.72 grams of crack cocaine; 10.999 grams of fentanyl pills; and kilo wrappers and drug paraphernalia.

Throughout the course of his involvement in the conspiracy, it was reasonably foreseeable to Wilson that he or other members of the conspiracy would distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine, as well as quantities of crack cocaine, fentanyl and heroin, in furtherance of the conspiracy.

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.

This prosecution was brought as a part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Co-located Strike Forces Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location.  This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations against priority targets and their affiliate illicit financial networks.  These prosecutor-led co-located Strike Forces capitalize on the synergy created through relationships forged by agents, analysts, and prosecutors who remain together over time, and they epitomize the model that has proven most effective in combating organized crime.  The specific mission of the Baltimore OCDETF Strike Force is to reduce violent, drug-related, and gang crime in the Baltimore area and surrounding region.

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the DEA and the Baltimore Police Department for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys LaRai N. Everett and James T. Wallner, who are prosecuting 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-psnexile and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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Source: United States Department of Justice News

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division traveled to Memphis, Tennessee, on April 3 and 4 to continue the Civil Rights Division’s tour to engage with stakeholders in underserved communities and reaffirm the department’s commitment to protecting the civil rights of all Americans.

On Monday, Assistant Attorney General Clarke participated in a fireside chat with the Student Bar Association at the University of Memphis Law School. She discussed the Civil Rights Division’s efforts enforce federal civil and criminal civil rights laws and encouraged law students to consider careers in government service. 

In the evening, Assistant Attorney General Clarke participated in a community conversation hosted by the Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change at the University of Memphis. Attendees included faith, community and student leaders, and local residents. She discussed the department’s recent efforts to address modern day redlining in Memphis, implement policing reform, and protect people from housing discrimination. She thanked attendees for their steadfast commitment to civil rights and pushing for change in their community.

On Tuesday, she participated in a fireside chat for several hundred 11th and 12th grade students at the Whitehaven High School in the Memphis-Shelby County School District. She discussed her journey as a civil rights attorney, encouraged the students to pursue careers in public service and addressed questions concerning the civil rights challenges facing young people today.

That afternoon, she visited the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee where she met with U.S. Attorney Kevin Ritz, his leadership team and the attorneys and professional staff of the office. She thanked all staff members for their dedicated service and partnership in protecting civil rights.

During her trip, Assistant Attorney General Clarke also had several meetings with local Memphis officials, including State Representative G.A. Hardaway, Mayor Jim Strickland, Memphis Police Chief C.J. Davis and Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy. In those discussions, she reinforced the Justice Department’s commitment to working with our local partners on civil rights issues.

To close her trip, Assistant Attorney General Clarke delivered remarks at the National Civil Rights Museum’s program commemorating the 55th Anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The museum is located at the former Lorraine Motel, the location where Dr. King was assassinated on April 4, 1968. The event was attended by several civil rights leaders, including Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III, community leaders and elected officials from across the country. Read her full remarks here.

In the upcoming weeks, Assistant Attorney General Clarke will travel to Arkansas, Mississippi and South Carolina to continue meeting with stakeholders in underserved communities.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Baltimore, Maryland – A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging Charles Austin Jenkins, age 66, of Thurmont, Maryland, and Robert Justin Krop, age 36, of Frederick, Maryland, with conspiracy and false statements in order to acquire machineguns.  Krop is also charged with illegal possession of machineguns.  No court appearance is scheduled for the defendants at this time. 

The indictment was announced by Erek L. Barron, United States Attorney for the District of Maryland and Special Agent in Charge Toni M. Crosby of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Baltimore Field Division.

As detailed in the indictment, Charles Jenkins has been the Sheriff of Frederick County since his election in 2006 and was most recently re-elected in 2022.  Robert Krop is the principal owner and operator of firearms-related businesses in Frederick County.  Krop and his businesses held up to two Federal Firearms Licenses (“FFLs”) that allowed Krop and the business, under certain circumstances, to possess and deal in machineguns.

The six-count indictment alleges that from August 2015 to May 2022, Jenkins and Krop conspired to unlawfully purchase machineguns and falsified multiple documents on the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office letterhead requesting machineguns for evaluation and demonstration to the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office.  Krop allegedly drafted these documents for Jenkins’ signature.  According to the indictment, Jenkins and Krop knew that there would not be a demonstration of the machineguns to the Sheriff’s Office and that the machineguns were intended for rental to Krop’s customers.  Krop also allegedly illegally possessed seven machineguns.  The indictment further alleges that Krop’s business offered political support to Jenkins in recognition of his support for the business. 

If convicted, Jenkins and Krop face a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison for the conspiracy, for false statements in records maintained by a federal firearms licensee and for false statements to federal law enforcement.  If convicted, Krop also faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for unlawful possession of a machinegun. 

An indictment is not a finding of guilt.  An individual charged by indictment is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty at some later criminal proceedings. 

United States Attorney Erek L. Barron commended the ATF for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Barron thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christine Goo and Leo Wise, who are prosecuting the federal case.

For more information on the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit www.justice.gov/usao-md and https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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