Category: US Department of Justice

Source: United States Department of Justice News

Defendant Admitted Violating “Revolving Door” Prohibitions

            WASHINGTON – Richard Gustave Olson, Jr., 63, of Algodones, New Mexico, a former U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan and a former U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, was sentenced today to 36 months’ probation and a fine of $93,350 for two separate courses of conduct, both of which involved misconduct relating to his public office. The sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, U.S. Attorney E. Martin Estrada of the Central District of California, Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, and Assistant Director in Charge Donald Alway of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office.

            Olson pleaded guilty on June 3, 2022, in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia, to one count of making a false writing and one count of aiding and advising a foreign government with the intent to influence decisions of United States officers.

            Olson served as U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan from October 31, 2012, through November 17, 2015, and as U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan from November 17, 2015, through his retirement from government service on November 30, 2016. According to court documents, the defendant intentionally submitted a false ethics form that failed to disclose thousands of dollars of benefits he received from a businessman (“Person 1”) while the defendant was serving in government. When later questioned by the FBI concerning some of these benefits, the defendant falsely claimed that he did not know Person 1 paid for them. After the defendant retired from government service, Person 1 began paying him a consulting fee of $20,000 per month. While receiving these payments, the defendant illegally helped the government of Qatar influence U.S. policymakers in violation of laws meant to prevent recent retirees from leveraging their high-level U.S. government service to further foreign interests.

            Given his high-level position in the U.S. government, the defendant was subject to the “revolving door” prohibitions in 18 U.S.C. § 207(f) for one year after leaving government service. Congress enacted these prohibitions to prevent public officials from unfairly profiting from the contacts, associations, and special knowledge that they gained during their tenure as public servants. The phrase “revolving door” describes the practice of public officials abandoning public service for lobbying positions. Prohibitions on this practice, often referred to as mandatory “cooling-off” or “waiting” periods, forbid individuals from engaging in lobbying activities for a period of time after leaving public service. U.S. law prohibits senior officials—like the defendant—from representing a foreign government before any federal agency or from aiding or advising a foreign entity with the intent to influence the U.S. government for one year after leaving their positions. The defendant knowingly violated these prohibitions by providing aid and advice in furtherance of two Qatari goals: (1) convincing U.S. policymakers to establish U.S. Customs and Border Protection preclearance facilities at Doha International Airport, and (2) convincing U.S. policymakers to support Qatar, rather than its regional rivals, during the 2017 Gulf Diplomatic Crisis. After learning that the government was investigating his activities on behalf of Qatar, the defendant obstructed the government’s investigation by deleting relevant emails.

            This case was investigated by the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office and Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. O’Brien of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Stuart D. Allen of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and Deputy Chief Evan N. Turgeon of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section.

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – Christian Monge, 26, of Washington, D.C., pleaded guilty on September 13, 2023, to voluntary manslaughter while armed in the fatal stabbing of 30-year-old Brittanie Clark, mother of three children, on August 31, 2021, in the Fort Totten neighborhood, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Acting Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department. 

            As part of his plea, Monge admitted that his girlfriend accused Ms. Clark of inquiring about the defendant in a romantic way. Mr. Monge’s girlfriend assaulted Ms. Clark in front of bystanders, including several children. After the assault ended between the two women, Mr. Monge stabbed Ms. Clark 13 times in front of two children, including Ms. Clark’s young daughter. Mr. Monge will be sentenced on November 20, 2023, by Judge Robert Okun. 

            In announcing the guilty plea, U.S. Attorney Graves and Acting Chief Smith commended the work of those investigating the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.  

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – A Texas man was found guilty in the District of Columbia on Sept. 13, 2023, of three charges, including one felony and two misdemeanor offenses related to his actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol breach. 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 2020 presidential election.

            Ryan Scott Zink, 34, of Lubbock, Texas, was found guilty after a jury trial in U.S. District Court. Zink was convicted of obstruction of an official proceeding and aiding and abetting, a felony offense, as well as two misdemeanor offense of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds and disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds.

            According to evidence presented during the trial, On Jan. 6, 2201, Zink marched from the area near the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. to the United States Capitol and by approximately 1:45 p.m., stood immediately outside the restricted grounds on the east side of the Capitol. At about 2:00 p.m., other rioters had violently breached the barricades marking the restricted area near Zink and shortly thereafter, he entered the restricted area and marched through the plaza with others. Zink then made his way up the stairs of the Capitol’s Central East Portico.

            While on restricted grounds immediately outside the Capitol building, Zink filmed a series of video clips while on the Capitol grounds. In one clip, the defendant recorded himself stating, “We knocked down the gates! We’re storming the Capitol! You can’t stop us!” In the same video, Zink panned the phone camera to show the crowd around him and later began chanting, “We want Trump!”, as he moved through the crowd at the footsteps of the Capitol.

            Zink is the heard shouted, staring into his recording device: “You all want to know how it’s going? We are going to bum rush this s***!” In a second video, the defendant filmed the crowd as it attempted to breach the Rotunda Doors to the Capitol. Zink stated, “They’re not going to get this one.” In a third video, the Zink shouted, “You wanted to see what it’s become? We’re in the doors!” Towards the end of the video, the defendant turned the camera to capture another individual smashing a window near the Rotunda Doors.

            Zink later wrote to an associate about his involvement in the January 6^th riots, stating “Broke down the doors pushed Congress out of session I took two flash bangs I’m ok I’ll be posting pictures in a little bit when we get back I’m hurt but we accomplished the job” and “I’m afraid the time for rioting is over better clean those guns and invest in some level 4 armor.”

            Zink was arrested on Feb. 4, 2021, in Texas.

            U.S. District Chief Judge James E. Boasberg will sentence Zink on Dec. 18, 2023.  

            All charges carry potential financial penalties. The Court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

            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 Office for the Northern District of Texas.

            This case was investigated by the FBI’s Dallas and Washington Field Offices. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 32 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,100 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 396 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.

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

Source: United States Department of Justice News

            WASHINGTON – Samuel Sampson Peaks, 35, of Bowie, Maryland, was arraigned today on charges stemming from a 2013 cold case involving an armed sexual assault of a stranger, announced U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves and Acting Chief Pamela Smith, of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

            According to court documents, on February 12, 2013, Peaks encountered the victim, who was a stranger to him, at the Minnesota Ave. Metro station at approximately 6:00 a.m. He followed her and eventually brandished a handgun and forced her to perform a sexual act. After the assault was over, the victim immediately called police, who responded and recovered evidence. The evidence was timely tested for DNA in 2013 and resulted in a mixture of DNA from the victim and an unknown male. In 2020, the defendant was arrested for an unrelated crime in Prince George’s County, Maryland, at which time his DNA was collected and entered into CODIS, ultimately matching the DNA profile obtained from the evidence in the armed sexual assault case.

            On March 10, 2022, a District of Columbia Superior Court Grand Jury returned an indictment charging Peaks in the cold case with one count of first degree sexual abuse while armed with aggravating circumstances. On February 17, 2023, the defendant was sentenced to a period of incarceration after conviction in the Prince George’s County case. Peaks was brought to D.C. and arraigned on the sexual assault indictment on September 14, 2023.

            If convicted of the D.C. sexual assault, Peaks faces a maximum sentence of up to life in prison, a possible fine of up to $125,000, no less than five years of supervised release, and would be required to register as a sex offender for life.

            This case was brought as part of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia’s Cold Case Sexual Assault Initiative and investigated by MPD’s Sexual Assault Unit. In February 2018, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia created the Cold Case Sexual Assault Initiative, designed to work with law enforcement partners to reinvestigate, solve and bring charges in previously unsolved cases of sexual assault against adults and juveniles. The Cold Case Initiative works with the MPD, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Marshals Service, and state and local law enforcement agencies in the DMV area.

            This case is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Amy Zubrensky.

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

            WASHINGTON – A Pennsylvania woman was sentenced in the District of Columbia today on felony and misdemeanor charges related to her conduct during the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol breach. Her 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 2020 presidential election.

            Sandra S. Weyer, 60, of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge James E. Boasberg to 14 months in prison, 12 months of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution and fines.

            Weyer was convicted of obstruction of an official proceeding, a felony, as well as four misdemeanor charges of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds; disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds; disruptive conduct in a Capitol building; and parading, picketing, or demonstrating in a Capitol building, on June 6, 2023, following a bench trial before Chief Judge Boasberg.

            According to evidence presented during the trial, Weyer traveled from Pennsylvania to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, and was among the first rioters to enter the Capitol grounds by breaching police barricades on the East Front. During her time on the Capitol grounds, Weyer documented her activities in real-time via Facebook Live. In one video, Weyer encouraged others to “tear this s— down” in reference to the metal barricades set up by police. Weyer also stated that she “personally helped take down the barricades at the front of the Capitol” and that she was “laser-focused on breaking the barricades.”

            After breaching the East Front barricades, Weyer paraded across the East Plaza to the bottom of the Central East Steps. Weyer and other rioters then marched up the Capitol steps and forcibly pushed and shoved their way toward the Rotunda Door. Once outside the Rotunda Door, Weyer commanded her fellow rioters to “hold your ground,” “charge,” “don’t retreat,” and “break that door.” After the door was breached, Weyer forced her way into the Capitol building, pushing past United States Capitol Police (USCP) officers.

            Once inside the Capitol, Weyer went directly toward the Rotunda and declared, “This is awesome. We did it,” before making her way to the various hallways on the third floor near the House and Senate galleries. Weyer was in the Capitol building for approximately ten minutes. However, she remained on the Central East Steps for approximately an hour and fifteen minutes after exiting the building.

            While outside on the Central East Steps, Weyer continued to video herself bragging about her exploits. She also responded in real-time videos to her social media followers, encouraging them to undertake similar illegal conduct at their local state Capitols.                                 

            Weyer was arrested on June 28, 2021, in Mechanicsburg.

            This case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

            This case was investigated by the FBI Philadelphia Office’s Capital Area Resident Agency and the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department.

            In the 32 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,100 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 396 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigations are ongoing.

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