Month: August 2024

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

Thank you, Director Wray, for that generous introduction – and to Acting Deputy Secretary Canegallo for your words. Federal law enforcement is fortunate to have great leaders in the two of you.

You know, the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security together employ 80% of all federal law enforcement. So it’s fitting the Deputy Secretary and I are here together.

Now you may have heard rumors about a law enforcement rivalry between our two agencies – which I can neither confirm nor deny – but I can tell you that Deputy Secretary Canegallo and I are unified in our commitment to advancing women in law enforcement, and I’m grateful for her partnership. She is a terrific leader for DHS.

Thank you to WIFLE President Catrina Bonus and Vice President Jessie Lane for the invitation to speak today. It’s an honor to join WIFLE’s 25th Anniversary celebration.

I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of this community of women in federal law enforcement – a community that exists in large part because of the vision of WIFLE’s founders.

I’m happy to see some of my former colleagues as well – great law enforcement leaders like Amy Jo Lyons and Regina Lombardo – two former presidents of WIFLE’s executive committee.

I think I first learned about WIFLE from Amy Jo when she was FBI’s Special Agent in Charge of the Baltimore Field Office and I was Director Mueller’s Chief of Staff.

And its great to see Regina Lombardo, former ATF Acting Director and trailblazer in that job.

We’re all here today for a simple reason: because we believe that women in law enforcement make our communities safer, and we need more of them on the job.

For 25 years, WIFLE has been leading the way to make this a reality. Today, WIFLE is the only non-profit in the country dedicated exclusively to recruiting, retaining, and promoting women in federal law enforcement. 

Because of WIFLE’s persistence in promoting women in the law enforcement profession, we’ve come a long way.

But there was a time when every federal law enforcement agent in this nation was a man.

Every single one.

And I guess that’s not hard to believe when we hear about experiences like Nancy McRae’s.

But thanks to trailblazers like her and those we honor today, and WIFLE’s founders, today there are thousands of women serving in federal law enforcement.

I’m proud to help lead the many of those women in the Department of Justice who every single day are fulfilling our mission to uphold the rule of law, keep our communities safe, and protect civil rights.

They are women serving as sworn law enforcement officers across the FBI, ATF, DEA, Marshal’s Service, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons, as well as the members of the Justice Protective Service who protect our facilities.

And they are women serving as analysts and in professional staff roles across the Justice Department’s law enforcement agencies.

Today we honor some of the profession’s trailblazers.

Trailblazers is an appropriate term – because for all of us to move forward, someone had to go first.

The courage and service of those first women in federal law enforcement remain an inspiration today – and I’m so happy that many of them are here today.

I’d like to acknowledge:

• FBI Special Agent Susan Malone
• ATF Special Agent Ann Kocher
• U.S. Postal Inspector Janene Gordon
• And Secret Service Special Agents Phyllis Shantz, Kathryn Clark Childers, and Sue Ann Baker.

Your courage and service paved the path for the profession – and for women who followed in your footsteps.

Over the course of WIFLE’s 25-year history, we’ve seen sustained efforts by federal law enforcement agencies to recruit talented women to their ranks, and to retain them.

While the numbers of women in federal law enforcement have grown, the overall percentage of women across federal law enforcement has remained relatively constant – around 14%.

And that’s why initiatives like 30×30 are so important.

As the saying goes, you can’t be what you can’t see. And I’m guessing we’ve all had the experience at some point of looking around and seeing that we were the only woman in the room. I grew up with three brothers, so for me it started early.

So, we need more women in the pipeline to make that experience, the exception not the rule, and to fill the profession’s ranks – including at the executive level.

I’m proud that all of the Justice Department’s law enforcement components have signed onto the 30×30 Initiative.

I want to acknowledge Director Wray’s commitment on this and the leadership the FBI has shown in reaching this achievement with recent recruiting classes.

While 30×30 focuses on ensuring that women make up 30% of recruiting classes by 2030 – the recruiting classes are quite literally just the beginning.

It’s about recruiting more women to a career in law enforcement so that we are getting the best people for the job and strengthening our workforce across the board.

That’s why the leaders of the Justice Department’s law enforcement agencies are reaching out to colleges and universities across the country, speaking to students and promoting a more diverse profession for the next generation of criminal justice leaders, including for women.

They are running career fairs, building relationships with all-women colleges and universities, and developing targeted outreach programs for female veterans and military spouses to leverage their skills and experiences.

And it’s paying off: for instance DEA has increased women in senior executive positions by 11%.

But this effort is about more than increasing women’s representation and leadership in the profession – it’s about the safety of our communities.

Few professions stand to benefit more from adding women to their ranks than law enforcement.

Building trust with the communities we serve is critical to public safety.

Among other things, research shows that women officers are less likely than men to use excessive force; and they’re more effective at de-escalating volatile situations.

Our communities deserve to have confidence in law enforcement that is reflected in that research.

And women in law enforcement deserve the confidence of our communities.

Every woman who’s ever been the only woman in the room, at the table, or on a squad knows the feeling – the second guessing, the imposter syndrome, and worse.

Unfortunately, sometimes those critiques are not confined to the occasional voice in your head.

Recently it seems the ghost of J. Edgar Hoover is alive and well, voicing the outdated idea that women don’t belong in law enforcement.

Whether it’s in investigative, tactical, administrative – or, yes, protective roles – women in law enforcement make our communities safer.

Let me take this opportunity to say thank you to women and men of the U.S. Marshal’s Service who serve on my protective detail and keep me safe every day.

I’m grateful for their service.

The threats law enforcement is facing today are more complex and more dangerous than ever – that includes an unacceptable level of threats against public officials including law enforcement.

As these threats converge, I am certain of this: we need more women in law enforcement across more communities in more senior roles than ever.

At the Department of Justice, we have your back.

We celebrate your service, applaud your sacrifice, and appreciate everything you do to keep our public officials, our communities, and our country safe.

I have the privilege of witnessing that work every day. It’s visible across the Justice Department.

From DEA Administrator Anne Milgram to the Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons Colette Peters – to the many women leading within the U.S. Marshals Service, the ATF, and FBI throughout the country – our communities and our country are better because of their outstanding work.

As with WIFLE’s trailblazers – it’s only when someone goes first can the rest of us see the way.

I’m here today – as Deputy Attorney General and as a woman in law enforcement – in large part because my first boss at the Justice Department was Janet Reno — the first woman Attorney General in our country’s history.

It took too long to reach that milestone.

So, we have to keep pushing toward WIFLE’s vision of what law enforcement can and should look like; we have to ensure women have the opportunity to advance in all areas of the profession; and to stay in the field for the long term.

That’s why this gathering is so important. And that’s why I couldn’t be prouder to celebrate WIFLE’s impact.

Congratulations again on 25 years. I can’t wait to see where we are in 25 more.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

The Justice Department today filed a civil lawsuit and announced a proposed settlement with Legends Hospitality Parent Holdings LLC (Legends) for an alleged violation of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act (HSR Act). 

As alleged in the department’s complaint, Legends engaged in illegal premerger coordination in connection with its proposed acquisition of ASM Global Inc. (ASM) by exercising operational control over aspects of ASM during the HSR waiting period involving venue management services for an arena in California.

“Companies must remain separate and independent before they close their merger.  Our complaint alleges that Legends did not live up to that obligation,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Andrew Forman of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “The proposed settlement requires Legends to pay a meaningful civil penalty and imposes significant obligations to try to ensure that Legends complies with the law moving forward. I commend our tremendous investigative teams who remain vigilant in trying to ensure that there is no improper coordination between parties before closing.”

The civil antitrust lawsuit against Legends for an HSR Act violation was filed in the Southern District of New York. At the same time, the department filed a proposed final judgment that, if approved by the court, would resolve the department’s lawsuit.  The HSR Act prohibits companies from improperly combining operations or other aspects of their businesses before expiration of the required HSR Act waiting period.

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, among other things, Legends must pay a $3.5 million civil penalty, refrain from certain conduct, appoint an Antitrust Compliance Officer, implement an antitrust training and compliance program and submit regular compliance reporting to the department.

Legends is a global venue services company headquartered in New York.

ASM is a venue management and services company headquartered in Los Angeles. 

As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed consent decree, along with the competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register. Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed consent decrees during a 60-day comment period to Chief Owen Kendler of the Antitrust Division’s Financial Services, Fintech, and Banking Section at 450 Fifth Street NW, Suite 4000, Washington, D.C. 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the District Court for the Southern District of New York may enter the final judgment upon finding it is in the public interest.

The claims resolved by the resolution announced today are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Three residents of Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic, were extradited to the United States last week and made their initial appearance in Newark federal court yesterday on charges relating to their participation in a sprawling “grandparent scam” that defrauded elderly Americans out of millions of dollars.

Juan Rafael Parra Arias, also known as Yofre, 41; Miguel Angel Vasquez, also known as Miguel Disla, 24; and Jose Ismael Dilone Rodriguez, 34, are among 11 Dominican Nationals charged in a 19-count indictment filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey and unsealed on April 29. Following their initial appearance yesterday, the court ordered the three men detained pending trial.  The extradition of Parra Arias, Vasquez and Dilone Rodriguez follows that of their co-conspirators Rafael Ambiorix Rodriguez Guzman, also known as Max Morgan, 59, and Felix Samuel Reynoso Ventura, also known as Fili and Filly the Kid, 37, who appeared in Newark federal court on July 22 to answer the indictment.

According to the indictment, Parra Arias, Vasquez, Dilone Rodriguez and their co-conspirators engaged in a long-running “grandparent” or “family in need of bail” scam against hundreds of seniors across the United States, including in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. Parra Arias is alleged to have led a network of call centers in Santiago, Dominican Republic, while Vasquez and Dilone Rodriguez worked in these centers to recruit co-conspirators in the United States. 

As detailed in court filings, members of the conspiracy referred to as “openers” called elderly victims in the United States and impersonated the victims’ children, grandchildren or other close relatives. The call centers used technology to make it appear that the calls were coming from inside the United States. Typically, the victim was told that their grandchild had been in a car accident, was arrested in connection with an accident, and needed help.

Once openers tricked victims into believing their loved ones were in dire trouble, others working at the call centers, known as “closers,” allegedly impersonated defense attorneys, police officers or court personnel and convinced victims to provide thousands of dollars in cash to help their loved ones. The cash was typically retrieved by couriers — including those recruited and dispatched by Parra Arias, Vasquez, and Dilone Rodriguez — from the victims’ homes, or mailed by victims at the direction of the closers.

“The Justice Department’s Consumer Protection Branch and its law enforcement partners will vigorously pursue criminals who defraud victims through so-called ‘grandparent scams,’” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “We will continue to identify perpetrators of these schemes and prioritize the pursuit of those who deliberately target vulnerable Americans from abroad. We thank the government of the Dominican Republic for extraditing these defendants to the United States to face charges.”

“As alleged, these three defendants played a role in a scheme that relied on the love and devotion of elderly victims in order to cheat them out of millions of dollars,” said U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger for the District of New Jersey. “In this ‘grandparents’ scam,’ some of the defendants allegedly impersonated grandchildren in distress, claiming, for example, they had been arrested after a car accident involving a pregnant woman who later miscarried, and they needed immediate cash for bail or a lawyer. Conspirators like Parra Arias, Vasquez and Dilone Rodriguez allegedly operated the call centers or dispatched couriers to pick up money from the victims. My office is committed to protecting the rights of all victims, and we will relentlessly prosecute those who allegedly target vulnerable seniors to steal their hard-earned savings.”

“These defendants and their co-conspirators are accused of heartlessly robbing countless elderly victims of their precious time and often their life savings – all from more than 1,500 miles away,” said Special Agent in Charge Ivan J. Arvelo of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York. “Parra Arias, Vasquez and Dilone Rodriguez were among the 16 individuals charged in this appalling scheme, which spanned at least four U.S. states and allegedly threatened hundreds of innocent Americans’ livelihoods. The merciless greed of perpetrators is boundless, but is no match for HSI New York’s El Dorado Task Force, its Cyber Intrusion Group and the greater law enforcement community. I am proud to stand alongside our global partners in our relentless commitment to the safety and overall wellbeing of the vulnerable public.”

“The grandparent scam is a cruel fraud scheme that deliberately preys on elderly and vulnerable persons within society. Perpetrators, often cowardly operating off-shore, cause extreme emotional and financial harm to the innocent people they target in commission of this crime,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Bradley Parker of the Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General (SSA-OIG) Boston New York Field Division. “SSA-OIG proudly joined HSI, the FBI, the Justice Department and the NYPD in investigating these complex, international scams aimed at defrauding SSA beneficiaries and we appreciate the diligence of the U.S. Marshals Service in facilitating the extradition of these defendants from the Dominican Republic to New Jersey to hold them accountable for their actions.”

“We are now one step closer to holding accountable the alleged fraudsters who financially exploited hundreds of elderly Americans,” said Commissioner Edward A. Caban of the New York City Police Department (NYPD). “This should serve as a reminder to other criminals about the extensive reach of New York law enforcement and our unwavering commitment to delivering justice to all victims. I applaud our NYPD investigators and all of our federal partners for their dedication to this important case.”

Parra Arias, Vasquez and Dilone Rodriguez each face multiple charges, including mail and wire fraud conspiracy, wire fraud, mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering. If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count, a maximum fine of $250,000 for each count of mail and wire fraud and a maximum fine of $500,000 for money laundering conspiracy and money laundering.

HSI, SSA-OIG, NYPD and the FBI are investigating the case. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in securing the arrest and extradition from the Dominican Republic of the defendants with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service. Justice Department officials also recognized the critical cooperation of the Dominican government in effecting the extradition of Parra Arias, Vasquez and Dilone Rodriguez pursuant to the treaty between the two countries.

Trial Attorneys Jason Feldman, Joshua Ferrentino and Emily Powers of the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch and Assistant U.S. Attorney Carolyn Silane for the District of Jersey are prosecuting 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 at 1-833-FRAUD-11 (1-833-372-8311). This Justice Department 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 www.justice.gov/civil/consumer-protection-branch. Elder fraud complaints may be filed with the FTC at www.reportfraud.ftc.gov/ or at 877-FTC-HELP. The Justice Department provides a variety of resources relating to elder fraud victimization through its Office for Victims of Crime, which can be reached at www.ovc.gov.

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 Criminal Division

The Justice Department issued the following statements from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, regarding the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia’s decision in United States v. Google:

“This victory against Google is an historic win for the American people,” said Attorney General Garland. “No company — no matter how large or influential — is above the law. The Justice Department will continue to vigorously enforce our antitrust laws.”

“This landmark decision holds Google accountable. It paves the path for innovation for generations to come and protects access to information for all Americans,” said Assistant Attorney General Kanter. “This victory is a reflection on the tireless efforts of the dedicated public servants at the Antitrust Division and our state law enforcement partners whose work made today’s decision possible.”