Month: May 2023

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON –Jonathan Montiethe Perry 39, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty this week to one count of importation of a controlled substance (Gamma Butyrolactone), announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, Special Agent in Charge Derek W. Gordon, of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C. Field Office, and Robert J. Contee III, Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department.

            Perry entered the plea on May 9, 2023, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. U.S. District Court Judge Reggie B. Walton scheduled a sentencing hearing for August 18, 2023.

            According to the Government’s evidence, on or about December 26, 2022, United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers assigned to the John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport, New York, NY Mail Branch conducted an inspection of an international package that was addressed to the defendant in Washington D.C.  The package was found to contain five unmarked plastic bottles filled with clear liquid, weighing approximately 6.07 kilograms (gross weight including the plastic bottles). CBP officers used a Gemini Thermo Scientific system to analyze the clear liquid and returned a presumptive positive match for Gamma Butyrolactone (GBL).  The package contained approximately 5,000 milliliters of GBL which weighed approximately 5 kilograms. A subsequent laboratory analysis of samples taken from the five bottles further confirmed that the clear liquid contained GBL.

            On January 5, 2023, at approximately 10:15 a.m., an undercover law enforcement officer conducted a controlled delivery of a package to an apartment complex where it was eventually retrieved by the defendant. Shortly thereafter, the defendant was followed and observed entering another apartment complex, then into a specific apartment with the target package in his hand.  Law enforcement waited several minutes, knocked on the apartment door, announced their presence, and subsequently executed a search warrant.  The defendant was present and detained without incident. Upon entering the residence, law enforcement observed the target package on the kitchen table next to a pair of scissors. On a separate nearby table, there was an open laptop computer with the USPS package tracking website open and the target package’s tracking number displayed. In addition, law enforcement officers recovered hundreds of empty, unfilled plastic pill capsules, a plastic bag containing several dozen empty plastic vials, a box containing six small empty, blue-colored vials and several glass droppers. Law enforcement also recovered one plastic bag that contained at least several dozen empty plastic vials and had a maximum capacity of 400 vials. 

            In announcing today’s plea, U.S. Attorney Graves, Special Agent in Charge Gordon, and Chief Contee commended the work of those who investigated the case from Homeland Security Investigations and the Metropolitan Police Department.  They acknowledge the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, including Paralegal Specialist Karla Nunez.

            Finally, they commended the efforts of Assistant United States Attorney Shehzad Akhtar who investigated and prosecuted the case.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Four men were sentenced for their participation in a website dedicated to child sexual exploitation.

Kyle William Leishear, 43, of Bayonet Point, Florida, was sentenced yesterday to 20 years in prison. On April 25, Leishear’s three co-defendants were sentenced for their roles in a child exploitation enterprise: Christopher William Kuehner, 38, of Bremerton, Washington, was sentenced to 20 years in prison; Jacob Royce Mullins, 20, of South Webster, Ohio, was sentenced to seven years in prison; and Matthew Martin, 25, of Lancaster, Wisconsin, was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison. 

“We cannot and will not tolerate websites like Rapey.su that invite and encourage members to congregate, discuss, and engage in the sexual exploitation of children and young women, to memorialize this exploitation, and to distribute illegal sexually explicit images of the victims,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “The Department of Justice is committed to rooting out these websites and bringing to justice those who join them for the purpose of perpetuating the victimization of some of the most vulnerable members of society.” 

According to court documents, Leishear, Kuehner, Mullins, and Martin were prominent members of the “Rapey.su” website, which was dedicated to, among other things, child sexual exploitation. After becoming a member of the website, Leishear enticed multiple minor victims, including one as young 12-years-old, to produce and share sexually explicit images. Kuehner also repeatedly induced minor victims to produce and post sexually explicit images and videos to the site. Additionally, Leishear attempted to distribute child sexual abuse material on the website. Mullins and Martin both repeatedly distributed child sexual abuse material images on the website, and Mullins enticed another website user to produce and share sexually explicit images of a minor victim. Mullins also produced videos of himself engaging in sex with a minor he had met on the website. 

“I am grateful for the hard work of our agents and prosecutors to seek justice in this horrific case. These defendants caused immeasurable trauma on their victims, amplified by the group’s online sharing of their abuse,” said U.S. Attorney Jessica D. Aber for the Eastern District of Virginia. “This case shows that internet anonymity will not protect offenders from facing full accountability for their illegal online conduct.”

“The actions of the four individuals in this case were nothing short of reprehensible,” said Special Agent in Charge Derek W. Gordon of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Washington, D.C. “They shamefully targeted the most vulnerable members of our community for their own perverse desires. HSI Washington, D.C. remains committed to protecting children from abuse and holding accountable those individuals who would victimize minors. HSI remains vigilant in watching for indicators of child exploitation throughout our communities.”

HSI investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Whitney Kramer of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Schlessinger for the Eastern District of Virginia prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Today, in the District of Puerto Rico, a federal grand jury returned two separate indictments charging Luis Enrique Rodriguez Sanchez and Pedro Luis Bones Torres with violations of the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act related to the illegal construction and deposit of material into the wetlands and waters of the United States in the area of the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (JBNERR) and Las Mareas community of Salinas, Puerto Rico.

According to the indictments, from approximately January 2020 through October 2022, Luis Enrique Rodriguez Sanchez (Rodriguez Sanchez) and Pedro Luis Bones Torres (Bones Torres) knowingly discharged fill material from excavation and earth moving equipment into the wetlands and waters of the United States in violation of the Clean Water Act. Further, both Rodriguez Sanchez and Bones Torres are charged with building structures within the navigable waters of the United States without authorization of the Secretary of the Army, in violation of the Rivers and Harbors Act. These activities occurred in the coastal waters and wetlands of the Las Mareas community and JBNERR in Salinas, Puerto Rico.

“These cases demonstrate our commitment to protecting wetland ecosystems, which have many public and environmental benefits,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “Coastal wetlands protect communities from storm surges and hurricanes, protect vulnerable species from exploitation, stabilize estuaries and provide natural water filtration that improves water quality.”

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to enforcing federal environmental protection laws and to holding violators responsible for the harm that they cause,” said U.S. Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow for the District of Puerto Rico. “These laws play an important role in protecting the animals, resources, and habitats within Puerto Rico, the Las Mareas community, and the Jobos Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. The unpermitted construction, pollution, and fill within the protected waters of the United States also poses flooding and hurricane mitigation concerns for surrounding communities. As such, they are a priority for federal environmental enforcement efforts.” 

“Today’s actions send a clear signal that the Department of Commerce Office of Inspector General (DOC-OIG) is dedicated to investigating potential fraud, waste and abuse in projects receiving funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA),” said Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey Lysaght of the DOC-OIG. “DOC-OIG greatly appreciates the cooperative efforts of our prosecutorial and law enforcement partners as we seek to enforce laws protecting the environment and natural beauty of Puerto Rico.” 

The Clean Water Act was enacted by Congress in 1972 to protect and maintain the integrity of the waters of the United States. The Clean Water Act’s main purpose is to ensure the restoration and maintenance of the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the nation’s waters. It prohibits the discharge of any pollutant and fill material into waters of the United States except when a permit is obtained from the United States.

The Rivers and Harbors Act was originally enacted in 1899 and is generally considered the oldest environmental law in the United States. It serves to regulate and protect the navigable waters of the United States and prohibits the un-permitted construction of structures within those waters. Both the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act protect the coastal waters within the JBNERR.

The JBNERR was designated as a National Estuarine Research Reserve by the NOAA in 1981 and is comprised of approximately 2,800 acres of coastal ecosystems in the Southern coastal plain of Puerto Rico. The JBNERR contains mangrove islands, mangrove forests, tidal wetlands, coral reefs, lagoons, salt flats, dry forest and seagrass beds. It is also home to the endangered brown pelican, peregrine falcon, hawksbill turtle and West Indian manatee. The JBNERR is owned and operated by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (PR-DNER).

Both Rodriguez Sanchez and Bones Torres were arrested and are scheduled to appear today before Magistrate Judge Bruce J. McGiverin of the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico for their respective initial appearances. If convicted, the defendants face up to four years in prison, as well as fines and injunctive relief to remove violative structures.

Various federal agencies are involved in this ongoing investigation related to environmental crimes in the JBNERR and Las Mareas community, including the Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID), FBI, U.S. Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division (Army-CID), DOC-OIG, NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement (NOAA-OLE), and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement (FW-OLE).

The case is being prosecuted by Senior Trial Attorney Patrick M. Duggan of the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth A. Erbe, Environmental Litigation Coordinator for the District of Puerto Rico.

An indictment 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

A federal grand jury in the District of Delaware returned an indictment charging a Delaware man and woman with sex trafficking, labor trafficking and related charges. The defendants are charged with aiding and abetting one another in committing sex trafficking and forced labor trafficking against 13 victims.

The indictment alleges that from 2014 through 2020, Clifton H. Gibbs, 66, and Brooke D. Waters, 44, of Lewes, recruited, harbored, transported and compelled nine victims to engage in commercial sex acts under the threat that they would suffer serious harm if they did not comply. The indictment further alleges that from 2016 through 2020, Gibbs and Waters obtained the labor and services of six victims under the threat of suffering serious harm if they did not comply. Finally, the indictment alleges that Gibbs and Waters transported three victims across state lines for the purpose of criminal sexual activity.

The sex trafficking charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison and a maximum of life imprisonment. The forced labor charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The interstate transportation for the purposes of criminal sexual activity charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney David C. Weiss for the District of Delaware, Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Special Agent in Charge William S. Walker of the Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Philadelphia and Special Agent in Charge James C. Harris of HSI Baltimore made the announcement. The Delaware State Police, led by Colonel Melissa Zebley, provided valuable assistance in the investigation.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Briana Knox for the District of Delaware, Trial Attorney Rebekah J. Bailey of the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit and Trial Attorney Caylee Campbell of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section are prosecuting the case, with assistance from Senior Financial Investigator Kathryn Montemorra of the Money Laundering Section’s Special Financial Investigations Unit.

Anyone who believes that they may have been a victim of this case or may have relevant information to share is asked to call the HSI tip line at 866-DHS-2423.

If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, please call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888.

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

Source: United States Department of Justice News

AUSTIN, Texas – An Austin man was sentenced in a federal court in Austin Wednesday to 84 months in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release for engaging in illicit sexual conduct in foreign places.

According to court documents, Michael Wayne Roberts, 41, was living in Medellin, Colombia when he paid money for sex with three Colombian girls between the ages of 13 and 15 on multiple occasions between December 2020 and June 2021.  Roberts was arrested on Sept. 15, 2022 and has remained in federal custody.  He pleaded guilty in February to all three counts in his indictment.

In addition to the prison sentence and supervised release, the U.S. district judge ordered Roberts to pay $147,844.51 in restitution to the victims.  Roberts must also register as a sex offender.

“This sentencing reflects that those who engage in sexual conduct with minors, regardless of where it occurs, will be held accountable for their heinous, predatory crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District of Texas.  “I am grateful for the diligent work of the Colombian National Police and our federal partners at Homeland Security Investigations, leading to the arrest and prosecution of this individual.  Their commitment to justice has made our communities safer and protected our most vulnerable population—our children.”

“Protecting the children in our communities remains a top priority for Homeland Security Investigations,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Alejandro M. Amaro for HSI San Antonio. “This sentence is a testament that HSI remains committed to identifying individuals who prey on our most vulnerable population, especially those individuals that hold positions of public trust.”

HSI and the Colombian National Police investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Keith Henneke prosecuted the case.

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