Category: US Department of Justice

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Four Real Estate Investors Sentenced in Multimillion-Dollar Loan Scheme

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Four real estate investors were sentenced in an extensive, multi-year conspiracy to fraudulently obtain multimillion-dollar loans on commercial and multifamily properties.

Aron Puretz, 53, of New Jersey, and his son, Chaim “Eli” Puretz, 29, of New Jersey, were sentenced to prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution. Aron Puretz was sentenced to 60 months in prison and ordered to pay $22,235,457 in restitution, and Eli Puretz was sentenced to 24 months in prison and ordered to pay $20,315,457 in restitution.

Moshe “Mark” Silber, 34, of New York, and Fredrick Schulman, 72, of New York, were also sentenced to terms of imprisonment for their respective roles in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution. Silber was sentenced to 30 months in prison, and Schulman was sentenced to 12 months and a day in prison, to be followed by nine months of home confinement.  The restitution amounts for Silber and Schulman will be determined at a later hearing.

According to court documents, Aron and Eli Puretz were owners of a commercial property, Troy Technology Park, in Troy, Michigan. In September 2020, Aron and Eli Puretz purchased Troy Technology Park for approximately $42 million, before selling or flipping the property to a co-conspirator for approximately $70 million. Aron and Eli Puretz and their co-conspirators provided the lender with falsified documents that included the inflated purchase price. Based on the fraudulent documents, the lender funded a loan for $45 million. To conceal the fraudulent nature of the transaction, Aron and Eli Puretz and co-conspirators arranged for a short-term $30 million loan, which was used to make it appear that they had the funds needed to close on the sale. On Sept. 25, 2020, a title company based in Lakewood, New Jersey, performed two simultaneous closings, one for the true sales price and another for the fraudulent sales price presented to the lender. 

Separately, Silber and Schulman were managing members of Rhodium Capital Advisors, an entity that was involved in the acquisition and management of Williamsburg of Cincinnati, a large apartment complex in Cincinnati, Ohio. In March 2019, Williamsburg of Cincinnati was acquired for $70 million. However, Silber, Schulman, and other co-conspirators utilized a stolen identity to present a lender and Fannie Mae with a fraudulent purchase-and-sale contract for over $95 million and other fraudulent documents. On March 8, 2019, two closings were performed, one for the true $70 million sales price and another for the fraudulent over $95 million sales price presented to the lenders. Based on the co-conspirators’ false statements, the lender and Fannie Mae funded a loan in excess of $74 million for the purchase of Williamsburg of Cincinnati.

Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Interim U.S. Attorney Alina Habba for the District of New Jersey; Inspector General Brian M. Tomney of the FHFA-OIG; Postal Inspector in Charge Eric Shen of the USPIS Criminal Investigations Group; and Acting Inspector General Stephen M. Begg of the HUD-OIG made the announcement.

Trial Attorney Siji Moore of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Martha Nye for the District of New Jersey are prosecuting the case.

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Attorney General Pamela Bondi Directs Prosecutors to Seek Death Penalty for Luigi Mangione

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

WASHINGTON – Today, Attorney General Pamela Bondi released the following statement:

“Luigi Mangione’s murder of Brian Thompson — an innocent man and father of two young children — was a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America. After careful consideration, I have directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty in this case as we carry out President Trump’s agenda to stop violent crime and Make America Safe Again.”

  • As alleged, Luigi Mangione stalked and murdered UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson on December 4th, 2024.  The murder was an act of political violence.  Mangione’s actions involved substantial planning and premeditation and because the murder took place in public with bystanders nearby, may have posed grave risk of death to additional persons.   
  • Following federal murder charges handed down on December 19th, 2024, Attorney General Bondi has now directed Acting US Attorney Matthew Podolsky to seek the death penalty in this case.

This is in line with Attorney General Bondi’s Day One Memo as Attorney General entitled Reviving The Federal Death Penalty And Lifting The Moratorium On Federal Executions

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U.S. Attorneys for Southwestern Border Districts Charge More than 960 Illegal Aliens with Immigration-Related Crimes During the Fourth week in March as part of Operation Take Back America

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Since the inauguration of President Trump, the Department of Justice is playing a critical role in Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve total elimination of cartels and transitional criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN). 

Last week, the U.S. Attorneys for Arizona, Central California, Southern California, New Mexico, Southern Texas, and Western Texas charged more than 960 defendants with criminal violations of U.S. immigration laws.  

The Southern District of Texas filed 257 cases in relation to immigration and border security. Of those, 98 face allegations of illegally re-entering the country with the majority having felony convictions such as narcotics, violent and/or sexual crimes and prior immigration offenses, among others. A total of 132 face charges of illegally entering the country, 23 cases involve various instances of human smuggling, and the remainder relate to firearms and other immigration matters. Among those charged as part of these new cases include two illegal alien human smugglers who engaged in a dangerous pursuit and crash.  

The Western District of Texas announced that federal prosecutors in the district filed 261 immigration and immigration-related criminal cases.  

The District of Arizona brought immigration-related criminal charges against 260 defendants. Specifically, the United States filed 96 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the United States, and the United States also charged 155 aliens for illegally entering the United States. In its ongoing effort to deter unlawful immigration, the United States also filed nine cases against nine individuals responsible for smuggling illegal aliens into and within the District of Arizona. 

The Central District of California filed criminal charges against 20 defendants who allegedly were found in the U.S. following removal. Many of the defendants charged previously were convicted of felony offenses before they were removed from the United States, offenses that include vandalism and firearms crimes. 

The Southern District of California filed 90 border-related cases this week, including charges of transportation of illegal aliens, reentering the U.S. after deportation, deported alien found in the United States, and importation of controlled substances. In addition to reactive border-related crimes, the Southern District of California also prosecuted a significant number of proactive cases related to terrorism, organized crime, drugs, white-collar fraud, violent crime, cybercrime, human trafficking and national security. Recent developments in those and other significant areas of prosecution can be found here. 

The District of New Mexico brought the following criminal charges in New Mexico: 37 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Reentry After Deportation (8 U.S.C. 1326), six individuals were charged this week with Alien Smuggling (8 U.S.C. 1324), and 32 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Entry (8 U.S.C. 1325). In a significant case, a criminal complaint was filed against David Serrano-Dominguez, a Mexican national illegally present in the U.S., charging him with being an alien in possession of firearms, possession of an unregistered short-barrel rifle, and reentry of a deported alien. HSI agents arrested Serrano-Dominguez at an apartment complex in Deming, NM, where he had been residing. Agents had identified social media posts showing Serrano-Dominguez in possession of and discharging handguns and rifles. Following his arrest, agents discovered 10 firearms and approximately 500 rounds of ammunition in the apartment. Among the firearms was an unregistered short-barreled rifle. 

We are grateful for the hard work of our border prosecutors in bringing these cases and helping to make our border safe again.

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Security News: U.S. Attorneys for Southwestern Border Districts Charge More than 960 Illegal Aliens with Immigration-Related Crimes During the Fourth week in March as part of Operation Take Back America

Source: United States Department of Justice 2

Since the inauguration of President Trump, the Department of Justice is playing a critical role in Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve total elimination of cartels and transitional criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN). 

Last week, the U.S. Attorneys for Arizona, Central California, Southern California, New Mexico, Southern Texas, and Western Texas charged more than 960 defendants with criminal violations of U.S. immigration laws.  

The Southern District of Texas filed 257 cases in relation to immigration and border security. Of those, 98 face allegations of illegally re-entering the country with the majority having felony convictions such as narcotics, violent and/or sexual crimes and prior immigration offenses, among others. A total of 132 face charges of illegally entering the country, 23 cases involve various instances of human smuggling, and the remainder relate to firearms and other immigration matters. Among those charged as part of these new cases include two illegal alien human smugglers who engaged in a dangerous pursuit and crash.  

The Western District of Texas announced that federal prosecutors in the district filed 261 immigration and immigration-related criminal cases.  

The District of Arizona brought immigration-related criminal charges against 260 defendants. Specifically, the United States filed 96 cases in which aliens illegally re-entered the United States, and the United States also charged 155 aliens for illegally entering the United States. In its ongoing effort to deter unlawful immigration, the United States also filed nine cases against nine individuals responsible for smuggling illegal aliens into and within the District of Arizona. 

The Central District of California filed criminal charges against 20 defendants who allegedly were found in the U.S. following removal. Many of the defendants charged previously were convicted of felony offenses before they were removed from the United States, offenses that include vandalism and firearms crimes. 

The Southern District of California filed 90 border-related cases this week, including charges of transportation of illegal aliens, reentering the U.S. after deportation, deported alien found in the United States, and importation of controlled substances. In addition to reactive border-related crimes, the Southern District of California also prosecuted a significant number of proactive cases related to terrorism, organized crime, drugs, white-collar fraud, violent crime, cybercrime, human trafficking and national security. Recent developments in those and other significant areas of prosecution can be found here. 

The District of New Mexico brought the following criminal charges in New Mexico: 37 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Reentry After Deportation (8 U.S.C. 1326), six individuals were charged this week with Alien Smuggling (8 U.S.C. 1324), and 32 individuals were charged this week with Illegal Entry (8 U.S.C. 1325). In a significant case, a criminal complaint was filed against David Serrano-Dominguez, a Mexican national illegally present in the U.S., charging him with being an alien in possession of firearms, possession of an unregistered short-barrel rifle, and reentry of a deported alien. HSI agents arrested Serrano-Dominguez at an apartment complex in Deming, NM, where he had been residing. Agents had identified social media posts showing Serrano-Dominguez in possession of and discharging handguns and rifles. Following his arrest, agents discovered 10 firearms and approximately 500 rounds of ammunition in the apartment. Among the firearms was an unregistered short-barreled rifle. 

We are grateful for the hard work of our border prosecutors in bringing these cases and helping to make our border safe again.

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Attorney General Pamela Bondi Dismisses Biden-Era Lawsuit Against Commonsense Georgia Election Law, Advancing President Trump’s Mandate to End Weaponization

Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division

Today, Attorney General Pamela Bondi directed the Department of Justice to dismiss its claims in In Re Georgia Senate Bill 202, a Biden-era lawsuit that falsely accused Georgia of intentionally suppressing Black voters’ votes.

“Contrary to the Biden Administration’s false claims of suppression, Black voter turnout actually increased under SB 202,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Georgians deserve secure elections, not fabricated claims of false voter suppression meant to divide us. Americans can be confident that this Department of Justice will protect their vote and never play politics with election integrity.” 

The Biden administration fabricated an untrue narrative following the passage of Senate Bill 202 and sued the state of Georgia, claiming without evidence that SB 202 was an intentional scheme to “depress the Black vote” and referring to the basic election legislation as “Jim Crow 2.0.”Some mainstream media outlets and corporate allies of the Biden Administration fueled this falsehood, demonizing Georgians for political gain and triggering boycotts—including Major League Baseball’s relocation of the 2021 All-Star Game from Atlanta—that, by some estimates, cost the state over $100 million in economic losses.

In reality, SB 202’s commonsense reforms—photo ID for all voting, strengthened absentee ballot procedures, and rapid reporting of results—spurred record voter turnout, including among Black Georgians.

“The Department of Justice is done with this disgrace,” said Acting Associate Attorney General and Department of Justice Chief of Staff Chad Mizelle. “There is nothing racist about protecting elections—baseless claims of Jim Crow-style discrimination are the real insult.” 

President Trump and Attorney General Bondi are committed to dismantling weaponized litigation and ensuring fair, lawful elections for all Americans. Instead of wasting time on false, divisive lawsuits, the Department of Justice will continue to root out real discrimination, promote common-sense election safeguards, and ensure equality for every American.