Source: United States Department of Justice
View All Environmental Crimes Bulletins
In This Issue:
Cases by District/Circuit
| District/Circuit |
Case Name |
Statute(s) |
| District of Alaska |
United States v. Jun Liang, et al. |
Big Game Hunting/Lacey Act |
| Eastern District of California |
United States v. Pir Danish Ali, et al. |
Wildlife Smuggling/ Conspiracy |
| Southern District of California |
United States v. Ruben Montes, et al. |
Pesticide and Veterinary Drug Smuggling/Conspiracy |
| United States v. Todd Campbell |
Refrigerant Smuggling/Failure to Declare Merchandise for Inspection |
| United States v. Edwin Flores |
Refrigerant Smuggling/ Conspiracy |
| Middle District of Georgia |
United States v. Donnametric Miller, et al. |
Dog Fighting/Animal Welfare Act, Conspiracy, Felon in Possession |
| District of Idaho |
United States v. Jeremy Pierce, et al. |
Tampering with a Monitoring Device/Clean Air Act |
| District of Maryland |
United States v. Mario Flythe, et al. |
Dog Fighting/ Conspiracy, Racketeering |
| District of New Jersey |
United States v. Darren McClave, et al. |
Clam Harvesting/ Conspiracy, Obstruction |
| Eastern District of New York |
United States v. Bryan Gosman, et al. |
Fish Overharvesting/ Conspiracy, Fraud, Obstruction |
| Southern District of Ohio |
United States v. Joel Brown |
Dog Fighting/Animal Welfare, Drug, Felon in Possession |
| United States v. Giancarlo Morelli, et al. |
Animal Videos/Animal Crush |
| District of Oregon |
United States v. J.H. Baxter & Co., Inc. et al. |
Hazardous Waste Treatment and Emissions/Clean Air Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, False Statement |
| District of South Dakota |
United States v. Joe Hofer |
Eagle Nest Destruction/Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act |
| Southern District of Texas |
United States v. Andres Alejandro Sanchez |
Wildlife Smuggling/Lacey Act |
| United States v. Eurobulk Ltd., et al. |
Vessel/Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships/ Obstruction |
| Eastern District of Washington |
United States v. Ryan Hugh Milliken, et al. |
Tampering with a Monitoring Device/Clean Air Act, Conspiracy |
| Western District of Washington |
United States v. Tracy Coiteux, et al. |
Tampering with a Monitoring Device/Clean Air Act, Conspiracy |
Indictments
United States v. Joel Brown
- No. 2:24-CR-00180 (Southern District of Ohio)
- ECS Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman
- AUSA Nicole Pakiz
- AUSA Kevin Kelley
On January 22, 2025, a court unsealed an indictment following the arrest of Joel Brown. Brown is charged in a 13-count indictment with illegally possessing dogs for fighting purposes, possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute and illegally possessing a firearm after a felony conviction (18 USC §§ 922, 924; 7 USC § 2156(b); 21 USC § 841. Trial is scheduled for March 24, 2025.
Brown kept 11 pit bull-type dogs for fighting purposes in Franklin County. Columbus Humane rescued the dogs and authorities also recovered tools and supplies commonly used in the training and keeping of dogs for fighting. Brown also possessed a shotgun and various types of ammunition, as well as approximately 50 grams of methamphetamine.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and Columbus Humane conducted the investigation.
Guilty Pleas
United States v. Darren McClave, et al.
- Nos. 3:24-CR-00824, 3:25-CR-00001 (District of New Jersey)
- ECS Trial Attorney Christopher Hale
- AUSA Kelly Lyons
- Former AUSA Kathleen O’Leary
On January 2, 2025, Darren McClave pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obstruct justice (18 U.S.C. § 371). Sentencing is scheduled for May 6, 2025.
McClave, captain of a clam vessel based out of New Jersey, was involved in a scheme to illegally harvest and sell excess scallops, violating federal fishing regulations. While clam vessels are authorized to take a limited quantity of scallops as bycatch, McClave routinely exceeded these limits and sold the surplus to Antonio Pereira, a seafood dealer. To cover up the overfishing, McClave and Pereira worked together to falsify the required Fishing Vessel Trip Reports and Dealer Reports mandated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Between October 2017 to April 2021, McClave sold over 64,000 pounds of illegal scallops to Pereira, making substantial profits from the illicit operation. Pereira, who participated in the conspiracy, pled guilty on December 19, 2024, to the same charge of conspiracy to obstruct justice. He is scheduled to be sentenced on April 22, 2025.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration conducted the investigation.
United States v. Pir Danish Ali, et al.
- No. 2:23-CR-00080 (Eastern District of California)
- AUSA Katherine Lydon
- AUSA Whitnee Goins
On January 7, 2025, Jason K. Bruce pleaded guilty to conspiring to smuggle an endangered Ladakh urial trophy into the United States (18 U.S.C. § 371). Sentencing is scheduled for May 20, 2025.
In March 2023, federal prosecutors charged Bruce and Pir Danish Ali, a Pakistani national, with conspiracy to violate the Endangered Species Act for making false statements and smuggling goods into the United States. Bruce also faced charges of smuggling and violating the Endangered Species Act (18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 545; 16 U.S.C. § 1538(a)(1)(A), (g)).
Ali, the CEO of a hunting outfitting and guiding company in Pakistan, and Bruce, a recreational big game hunter, began their illegal scheme in February 2016. They conspired to hunt a Ladakh urial, an endangered wild sheep in Pakistan, and smuggle the trophy into the United States. Bruce was aware that exporting this species from Pakistan was illegal. In the lead-up to the hunt, the two agreed that, if successful, Bruce would present forged documents to U.S. officials, falsely identifying the Ladakh urial as a different species when bringing it into the United States.
In December 2016, Bruce paid Ali $50,000 for the hunt. In April 2017, Bruce successfully shot the Ladakh urial. Between 2017 and 2018, Bruce made several trips between the U.S. and Pakistan to facilitate the illegal smuggling of the trophy.
On March 29, 2018, Bruce arrived at San Francisco International Airport from Pakistan with eight hunting trophies in his baggage, including the Ladakh urial. He was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection who alerted U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials. Bruce presented forged export documents purporting to be issued by Pakistani authorities.
Further investigation revealed that, between 2013 and 2018, at least 25 people who had hunted with Ali’s company presented forged documents to import at least 97 hunting trophies into the United States.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation.
Related Press Release: Eastern District of California | Galt Big Game Hunter Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Smuggle an Endangered Ladakh Urial Trophy into the United States | United States Department of Justice
United States v. Jeremy Pierce, et al.
- No. 4:24-CR-00240 (District of Idaho)
- ECS Senior Trial Attorney Cassie Barnum
- RCEC Karla G. Perrin
On January 7, 2025, Jeremy Pierce pleaded guilty to a felony violation of the Clean Air Act for tampering with a monitoring device (42 U.S.C. § 7413(c)(2)(C)). Pierce admitted to being involved in deleting and tuning vehicles at Gorilla Performance, a repair shop in Rexburg, Idaho, owned by his brother, Barry Pierce. Sentencing is set for March 26, 2025.
In addition, Jeremy Pierce’s company, Pierce Diesel Performance, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act for providing technical support to customers nationwide who purchased tuning devices and tunes from Barry Pierce’s company, Gorilla Diesel Performance (18 U.S.C. § 371).
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation.
United States v. Andres Alejandro Sanchez
- No. 24-CR-01264 (Southern District of Texas)
- AUSA Tory Sailer
- Assistance from ECS Senior Counsel Elinor Colbourn
On January 10, 2025, Andres Alejandro Sanchez pleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act for illegally importing a spider monkey into the United States (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(a)(1), 3373(d)(2)).
On October 7, 2024, Sanchez travelled from Mexico to Laredo, Texas, and failed to declare a spider monkey he had in his vehicle to Customs and Border Protection officers as he attempted to cross the border.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation.
United States v. Ruben Montes, et al.
- No. 23-CR-02377 (Southern District of California)
- ECS Assistant Chief Steve DaPonte
- AUSA Elizabet Brown
On January 16, 2025, Ruben Montes pleaded guilty to conspiring to smuggle and distribute more than $3 million worth of Mexican pesticides and veterinary drugs that are not approved for use in the United States (18 U.S.C. § 371). Sentencing is scheduled for April 2, 2025.
Beginning in November 2020, Montes coordinated the smuggling of pesticides and veterinary drugs from Mexico into the United States. Montes smuggled these chemicals and drugs into the country and distributed them within the United States. The primary pesticides involved were Taktic and Bovitraz, which are not registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for use in the United States. The smuggled veterinary drugs included Tylocet, Terramicina, Tetragent Ares, and Catarrol, which are not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in the United States.
Montes and others stored the pesticides and veterinary drugs in storage units in Calexico to distribute them throughout the United States.
Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigations Division, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations, and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control conducted the investigation.
United States v. Donnametric Miller, et al.
- No. 1:24-CR-00005 (Middle District of Georgia)
- ECS Senior Trial Attorney Ethan Eddy
- ECS Trial Attorney Leigh Rende
- ECS Law Clerk Amanda Backer
On January 21, 2025, Donnametric Miller pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate the Animal Welfare Act and transporting and possessing a dog for the purpose of having the dog participate in an animal fighting venture. Miller also pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm (7 U.S.C. §§ 2156(b), (a)(1); 18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 922, 924). Miller is the fourteenth and final defendant to plead guilty in a dog fighting case involving participants from several states. Co-defendants Terelle Ganzy and Terrance Davis pleaded guilty to conspiracy and participating in an animal fighting venture.
On November 22, 2024, co-defendants Fredricus White, Brandon Baker, Rodrecus Kimble, Tamichael Elijah, Timothy Freeman, Gary Hopkins, and Marvin Pulley entered guilty pleas for their involvement in a large-scale dog fighting event that was disrupted while in progress on April 24, 2022, in Donalsonville, Georgia. White and Baker pleaded guilty to conspiracy and possessing and transporting a dog for animal fighting purposes. Freeman pleaded guilty to being a spectator at the event, and Kimble, Elijah, Hopkins, and Pulley pleaded guilty to conspiracy. On December 16, 2024, Herman Buggs pleaded guilty to conspiracy.
Prosecutors charged a total of 14 defendants who traveled from southwest Georgia, Alabama, and Florida to participate in this event. Agents recovered 27 dogs, including 22 who were found in cars on the scene and had either already been fought, or whose handlers were awaiting their turn in the pit. Agents found one dog still in the fighting pit, who later succumbed to his injuries, as well as others living on the property who were owned by the event host.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Seminole County, Georgia, Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.
United States v. J.H. Baxter & Co., Inc. et al.
- No. 6:24-CR-00441 (District of Oregon)
- ECS Trial Attorney Rachel M. Roberts
- ECS Trial Attorney Stephen J. Foster
- AUSA William M. McLaren
- RCEC Karla G. Perrin
- ECS Paralegal Maria Wallace
- Former ECS Paralegal Samantha Goins
On January 22, 2025, J.H. Baxter & Co., Inc., and J.H. Baxter & Co., a California Limited Partnership (collectively “J.H. Baxter”) both pleaded guilty to charges of illegally treating hazardous waste and knowingly violating the Clean Air Act (CAA) (42 U.S.C. § 6928(d)(2)(A); 42 U.S.C. § 7413(c)(2)). The companies’ president, Georgia Baxter-Krause, pleaded guilty to two counts of making false statements in violation of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) (42 U.S.C. § 6928 (d)(3)). Sentencing is scheduled for April 22, 2025.
J.H. Baxter used hazardous chemicals to treat and preserve wood at its Eugene facility. The wastewater from the wood preserving processes was hazardous waste. The company operated a wastewater treatment unit to treat and evaporate the waste. Over the years, however, when the facility accumulated too much water on site, employees transferred this water to a wood treatment retort to “boil it off,” greatly reducing the volume. J.H. Baxter would then remove the waste that remained, label it as hazardous waste, and ship it offsite for disposal.
J.H. Baxter did not have a RCRA permit to treat its waste in this manner. Additionally, the facility was subject to CAA emissions standards. Company employees were directed to open all vents on the retorts, allowing discharge to the surrounding air.
State inspectors requested information about J.H. Baxter’s practice of boiling off hazardous wastewater. On two separate occasions (September 28 and 30, 2020), Baxter-Krause made false statements in response to these requests regarding the dates the practice took place, and which retorts were used. The investigation determined that Baxter-Krause knew J.H. Baxter maintained detailed daily production logs for each retort.
From approximately January to October 2019, J.H. Baxter boiled off hazardous process wastewater in its wood treatment retorts on 136 known days. Baxter-Krause was also aware that during this time J.H. Baxter used four of its five retorts to boil off wastewater.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation with assistance from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and the Oregon State Police.
Related Press Release: District of Oregon | J.H. Baxter Wood Treatment Companies and President Plead Guilty to Hazardous Waste and Air Pollution Charges | United States Department of Justice
United States v. Giancarlo Morelli, et al.
- No. 1:24-CR-00066 (Southern District of Ohio)
- ECS Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman
- AUSA Tim Oakley
- ECS Paralegal Jonah Fruchtman
On January 27, 2025, Giancarlo Morelli pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to create and distribute videos depicting the torture of monkeys (known as animal “crush” videos) (18 U.S.C. § 371).
Prosecutors charged Morelli, along with Nicholas Dryden and Philip Colt Moss, with various crimes related to these videos. The indictment states that Dryden commissioned videos from a 17-year-old in Indonesia who was willing to commit specified acts of torture on video in exchange for payment. Dryden utilized Telegram, a cross-platform messaging app that includes encrypted group messaging and private chats, to advertise the animal crush videos and solicit funding for additional videos. Within these private groups, Dryden shared snippets of videos that he commissioned and advertised that the full content was for sale.
Moss and Morelli each sent money to Dryden more than a dozen times in exchange for monkey torture videos. Thereafter, they frequently gave feedback on the videos and Morelli sometimes suggested torturous acts he’d like to see in future videos.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation.
Related Press Release: Southern District of Ohio | New Jersey man pleads guilty to conspiracy charge related to videos depicting monkey torture & mutilation | United States Department of Justice
Sentencings
United States v. Todd Campbell
- No. 3:24-CR-01972 (Southern District of California)
- AUSA Edward Chang
On January 2, 2025, a court sentenced Todd Campbell to complete a 12-month term of probation and pay $8,808 in restitution to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Campbell pleaded guilty to failure to declare merchandise for inspection (19 U.S.C. §§ 1433 (b)(2), 1436).
On September 3, 2024, Campbell drove his vehicle into the United States from Mexico at the San Ysidro Port of Entry. Inside his vehicle, he was carrying seven 30-pound cylinders of R-22 refrigerant, which he intentionally failed to declare for inspection. As a result of Campbell’s actions, the EPA was forced to properly dispose of the refrigerant, incurring a cost of $8,808.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division and Homeland Security Investigations conducted the investigation.
United States v. Bryan Gosman, et al.
- No. 2:21-CR-00217 (Eastern District of New York)
- ECS Trial Attorney Christopher Hale
- ECS Senior Trial Attorney Ken Nelson
- Former ECS Paralegal Samantha Goins
- ECS Paralegal Jonah Fruchtman
On January 6, 2025, a court ordered Christopher Winkler to pay $725,000 in restitution to the New York State Marine Resources Account of the Conservation Fund. The court also ordered Bryan and Asa Gosman to pay a combined restitution amount of $247,297 to the same fund. All three defendants—Winkler, Asa Gosman, and Bryan Gosman—are jointly and severally liable for $247,297 in restitution. Winkler alone is responsible for paying $477,703 to the fund, bringing his total restitution amount to $725,000.
In November 2024, a court sentenced Bryan and Asa Gosman to two years of probation, noting their “extraordinary cooperation” as the basis for the probation sentence.
In October 2023, after a three-week trial, a jury found Christopher Winkler guilty on all charges, including conspiracy, mail fraud, and obstruction of justice (18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 1341, 1519). Winkler, a commercial fisherman and captain of the F/V New Age, participated in a scheme to illegally overharvest fluke and black sea bass, violating federal fishing regulations. He conspired to commit mail fraud, falsified fishing logs to obstruct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and worked to undermine NOAA’s efforts to regulate fisheries. Winkler was sentenced to 30 months in prison and ordered to forfeit $725,000.
Between 2014 and 2017, Winkler was involved in a scheme to illegally overharvest summer flounder (fluke) and black sea bass, exceeding both federal quotas and state trip limits. To conceal the overharvesting, he falsified Fishing Vessel Trip Reports (FVTRs) on at least 200 fishing trips. In total, Winkler and his co-conspirators illegally harvested approximately 200,000 pounds of fluke and black sea bass, with an estimated wholesale value of $750,000.
Bryan and Asa Gosman, and the company they partially own, Bob Gosman Co., Inc., had previously pleaded guilty to their involvement in the fraud. The company was sentenced in December 2021 for its role in the illegal overharvesting operation. Under federal law, fishing captains are required to accurately report their catch on FVTRs submitted to NOAA, which relies on these reports to regulate fisheries and enforce sustainable fishing practices. Similarly, the first company to purchase fish from a fishing vessel must file a dealer report with NOAA.
NOAA Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation.
United States v. Edwin Flores
- No. 3:24-CR-00993 (Southern District of California)
- ECS Assistant Chief Stephen DaPonte
- Former AUSA Melanie Pierson
On January 7, 2025, a court sentenced Edwin Flores to complete a one-year term of probation and to pay $2,900 in restitution to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Flores pleaded guilty to conspiracy and failing to present merchandise for inspection by a customs officer (18 U.S.C. § 371).
On April 18, 2024, Flores drove a vehicle across the U.S.-Mexico border with three 30-pound cylinders of HCFC-22 that he failed to present for inspection.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division, Homeland Security Investigations, and Customs and Border Protection conducted the investigation.
United States v. Jun Liang, et al.
- No. 4:23-CR-00013 (District of Alaska)
- AUSA Steve Skrocki
- AUSA Carly Sue Vosacek
On January 13, 2025, a court sentenced Jun “Harry” Liang to time served (110 days), followed by two years’ supervised release. Liang also will pay a $10,060 fine and $9,100 in restitution to the Bureau of Land Management.
Prosecutors charged Liang and Brian Phelan for participating in an illegal big-game guide-outfitter operation. Between August 2021 and August 2022, Liang and Phelan conspired to provide guide-outfitter services for caribou and brown bear hunts in Fairbanks, Alaska, without the required state licenses to do so.
Liang posted advertisements on the ‘Little Red Book’ social media site offering guiding and outfitting services for big-game hunts out of Fairbanks, Alaska. Interested hunters sent deposits to Liang, who promised to locate and scout trophy animals that could be transported out of state. However, neither Liang nor Phelan possessed a State of Alaska big game guide-outfitter license. Liang fraudulently collected about $11,000 in 2021 and $60,000 in 2022, on behalf of himself and Phelan, for these guided hunts.
Liang pleaded guilty to a Lacey Act false labeling violation (16 U.S.C. §§ 3372(d)(2), 3373(d)(3)(b)), for failing to obtain a special recreation permit and operating in Denali National Park without the necessary permit. Phelan was sentenced in December 2024 to pay a $2,000 fine and complete a 30-month term of probation after pleading guilty to violating the Lacey Act and Bureau of Land Management regulations.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation, with assistance from the Alaska State Troopers Wildlife Investigations Unit.
Related Press Release: District of Alaska | Chinese national sentenced in illegal wildlife guide-outfitter scheme | United States Department of Justice
United States v. Joe Hofer
- No. 4:24-CR-40091 (District of South Dakota)
- AUSA Meghan Dilges
On January 13, 2025, a court sentenced Joe Hofer to pay a $1,200 fine and complete a one-year term of probation for violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (16 U.S.C. §§ 668(a), 668(c)).
Hofer is the farm boss for the Cambridge Hutterian Brethren (CHB) in Lake County, South Dakota. In November 2023, Hofer used CHB farm equipment to take down trees on property owned by CHB. One of the trees Hofer took down contained an active eagle nest, which was destroyed. Hofer did not have a permit to take down the eagle’s nest.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks conducted the investigation.
Related Press Release: District of South Dakota | Volga Man Sentenced for Violation of Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act | United States Department of Justice
United States v. Tracy Coiteux, et al.
- No. 3:21-CR-05184 (Western District of Washington)
- AUSA Seth Wilkinson
- AUSA Cindy Chang
- RCEC Karla G. Perrin
On January 13, 2025, a court sentenced Racing Performance Maintenance Northwest (RPM) and a related sales company called RPM Motors and Sales NW (RPM Motors) to each pay $10,000 fines and to complete three-year terms of probation. In March 2024, RPM pleaded guilty to tampering with a monitoring device in violation of the Clean Air Act (CAA)(42 U.S.C. § 7413(c)(2)(C)) and RPM Motors pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the CAA (18 U.S.C. § 371).
In November 2024, the court had sentenced the companies’ owners, Tracy Coiteux and Sean Coiteux, to each pay $10,000 fines, complete four-year terms of probation (to include four months’ home confinement) and perform 60 hours of community service. Sean Coiteux had pleaded guilty in March 2024 to tampering with a monitoring device in violation of the CAA (42 U.S.C. 7413(c)(2)(C)). In May 2024, Tracy Coiteux was convicted by a jury after a three-day trial on conspiracy to violate the CAA (18 U.S.C. § 371; 42 U.S.C. § 7413(c)(2)(C)).
Between January 2018 and January 2021, the defendants directed employees to delete pollution control hardware on diesel trucks they sold or serviced. They also tampered with the trucks’ monitoring devices to avoid detection of the missing control equipment. The Coiteux’s companies charged between $1,000 and $2,000 for each modification. Over a three-year period, the defendants serviced close to 375 diesel trucks, collecting more than $500,000 for these illegal modifications.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation.
United States v. Ryan Hugh Milliken, et al.
- No. 2:24-CR-00057 (Eastern District of Washington)
- AUSA Dan Fruchter
- AUSA Jacob Brooks
On January 22, 2025, a court sentenced Ryan Hugh Milliken and his company, Hardaway Solutions, LLC (Hardaway), after both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act (CAA) (18 U.S.C. § 371; 42 U.S.C. § 7413(c)(2)(C)). They both will complete five-year terms of probation, during which the company will be responsible for implementing an environmental compliance plan. Both defendants are jointly and severally responsible for paying a $75,000 fine.
Between August 2017 and November 2023, Milliken and Hardway created and sold illegal “delete tune” packages designed to disable and defeat required emissions controls and monitoring systems. Milliken and Hardway created and sold these delete tune files for various customers and vehicles, including Spokane-based trucking companies —PT Express, LLC, Spokane Truck Service, LLC, and Pauls Trans, LLC—operated by co-defendant Pavel Ivanovich Turlak. Milliken created and sold custom software delete tunes to Turlak for vehicles based on specifications Turlak outlined. Turlak then charged as much as $3,500 to diesel truck owners to “delete” and “tune” their vehicles by tampering with their pollution monitoring devices. Turlak also fraudulently received more than $300,000 in federal funding designated for eligible small businesses during the pandemic.
Turlak and his companies pleaded guilty in December 2024 to conspiring to illegally violate CAA emissions controls and to fraudulently obtaining hundreds of thousands of dollars in COVID-19 relief funding (42 U.S.C. § 7413 (c)(2)(C); 18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 1343, 287). Both defendants are scheduled for sentencing on April 2, 2025.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation with assistance from the EPA National Enforcement Investigations Center, the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General, and the Spokane Police Department.
United States v. Mario Flythe, et al.
- No. 23-CR-00354 (District of Maryland)
- AUSA Alexander Levin
- AUSA Darryl Tarver
On January 23, 2025, a court sentenced Mario Flythe to six months incarceration followed by three years of supervised release, to include six months’ home detention. Flythe also will pay a $10,000 fine.
Flythe pleaded guilty to conspiracy to engage in animal fighting, specifically the fighting of dogs, and interstate travel in aid of racketeering (18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 1952). Between November 2018 and September 2023, Flythe and co-defendant Frederick Douglass Moorfield, Jr., operated a kennel called “Razor Sharp Kennels,” using Flythe’s residence to keep, train, and breed fighting dogs.
Flythe’s cellphone revealed numerous message exchanges regarding dogfighting—primarily over the instant messaging applications WhatsApp and Telegram—with members of a group known as the “DMV Board.” In addition to arranging dog fights and wagers, Flythe and the DMV Board discussed the breeding and training of fighting dogs, procuring supplies for the maintenance and feeding of fighting dogs, and criminal prosecutions of dogfighters. In some exchanges, Flythe and others discussed indictments of other members of the DMV Board and speculated about the identity of a potential “snitch.”
Flythe’s instant messages also contained several exchanges in which he arranged dogfights. In those conversations, Flythe identified the weight and sex of the dog he wanted to sponsor in a fight. Other dogfighters then proposed a fight against their own dog or matched Flythe with another of their contacts who had a dog in the same weight class. The dogfighters would then agree on wagers and set a date for the fight, usually six to eight weeks after the match was made.
On several occasions between 2019 and 2023, Flythe received monetary payments through CashApp related to his participation in dogfighting conduct. Flythe also sent money to dogfighting contacts in connection with the dogfighting enterprise.
After executing a search of Flythe’s residence in September 2023, investigators recovered seven pit bull-type dogs from the premises. Four dogs were found chained to posts or poles in fenced-in cages in the property’s back yard, and three dogs were found in large metal cages in the basement.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Defense Criminal Investigation Service, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General conducted the investigation.
Related Press Release: District of Maryland | Glen Burnie Man Sentenced to Federal Prison in Connection With Multi-State Dogfighting Conspiracy | United States Department of Justice
United States v. Eurobulk Ltd., et al.
- Nos. 2:24-CR-00655, 2:24-CR-00368 (Southern District of Texas)
- ECS Senior Trial Attorney Kenneth Nelson
- AUSA Liesel Roscher
- AUSA John Marck
- ECS Paralegal Maria Wallace
On January 29, 2025, Eurobulk Ltd. pleaded guilty to a two-count information charging the company with violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) and obstruction of justice (33 U.S.C. § 1908(a); 18 U.S.C. § 1519). The court sentenced the company to pay a total criminal penalty of $1,500,000 and complete a four-year term of probation.
Eurobulk operated the M/V Good Heart, which transported bulk cargo worldwide. On April 29, 2023, the U.S. Coast Guard conducted a Port State Control examination of the vessel and received information from a whistleblower about illegal discharges of oil from the vessel. On at least two occasions in April 2023, the vessel’s crew discharged oily waste directly overboard from a space known as the “duct keel.” These discharges were not recorded in the oil record book (ORB). The crew also flushed the oil content meter with fresh water to ensure the oil water separator would allow the illegal overboard discharges. The crew failed to record these actions in the ORB, which obstructed the investigation. Christos Charitos, the vessel’s chief engineer, was sentenced in September 2024 to pay a $2,000 fine and complete a one-year term of probation after pleading guilty to violating APPS.
The U.S. Coast Guard conducted the investigation.
Related Press Release: Southern District of Texas | Foreign operator of bulk carrier convicted for concealment of pollution and falsification of records | United States Department of Justice
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